Climate Justice

Climate justice is an important topic within environmental justice and human rights that addresses the inherent right of people to a quality of life that is not disproportionately affected by climate change. According to the University of Colorado Boulder Environmental Center, climate justice is an issue that manifests at local to international levels and particularly affects people of color, people of low income, farmers, women, people with disabilities, people in the LGBT+ community, indigenous communities, coastal communities, migrants, refugees, religious minority groups, and other underrepresented, oppressed, and disproportionately-affected groups. Such populations are affected by compromised health, financial burdens and social and cultural disruptions, and oftentimes do not have the resources they need to adapt to the effects of climate change. The injustice is further exacerbated by the fact that these communities are often least responsible for the greenhouse gas emission and pollution that have resulted in the climate crisis we are currently facing. It is the people who have less impact on the environment that are being most affected by the environmental degradation we are witnessing today.

Overall, climate injustice addresses the fact that certain populations and countries:

• Are the least responsible for yet the most affected by the climate crisis
• Have less capacity and resources to deal with the impacts of the climate crisis
• Will have to deal with the environmental, social, health, economic, and cultural consequences of the climate crisis for generations to come
• Have less of a say than others in environmental decision-making spaces from the local to the international level

Action Items for All

Complete an action on Project Drawdown Ecochallenge and inspire others to do so as well.

The Project Drawdown Ecochallenge.org partnership provides a platform that outlines actions you can do using 100 most impactful climate change solutions. Many of these solutions address environmental justice issues. Using the platform, you can earn points on actions you complete and see the collective impact of a global community of environmental justice advocates and changemakers just like you. Actions on the Project Drawdown Ecochallenge platform are organized by themes, such as Social Justice. Explore the Social Justice track, and be sure to visit others as well as actions that address environmental justice issues fall in all of the themed tracks!

Here are a few Ecochallenges that directly pertain to Environmental Justice:

• Learn about local indigenous practices by attending a training, workshop, or presentation
• Support indigenous people’s land management by donating to the Native American Rights Fund
• Advocate for forest protection by contacting your representatives in Congress to implement policies that protect against deforestation
• Remind your elected officials of the importance of restoring both private and public farmland in your region by contacting them
• Support international clean energy efforts by donating to nonprofits that install renewable energy based-microgrids and clean cookstoves in low-income countries
• Encourage public transportation use in your community by improving your local bus stop. Ideas include posting a stop schedule and adding plants, art, seating, and other resources

Host an Environmental Justice event in your community! For tips on how to host successful university campus or community-based events, you can use the UNA-USA Chapter Handbook.

Volunteer for a local food bank or join a local initiative that addresses community food deserts

Apply for social and environmental justice internships at the Sierra Club and other organizations

NOTE: A lot of these organizations listed below have mailing lists. You can sign up for their mailing lists and receive updates every month on how to participate in current campaigns/objectives! Or you can donate to these organizations:

• League of Conservation Voters
• Indigenous Environmental Network
• American Civil Liberties Union
• Funder’s Collaborative of Youth Organizing

Other online resources:

• Join one of the organizations listed in the NAACP Database for Environmental and Climate Justice Resource Organizations
• Access and share EPA’s Environmental Justice online resources

Tell your representatives in Congress to step up their commitment to climate action, clean air, and eliminating plastic waste to protect the world’s oceans!

Tell your governor that you stand with the US Climate Alliance.

Since a true understanding of environmental justice involves an understanding of social justice, access comprehensive resources that discuss important social justice issues like racial equity. For example, access Racial Equity resources by food justice organization Food Solutions New England and women justice organization Movement Strategy Center for further information on racial equity learning.