Environmental Justice and Equity

Environmental injustice refers to the disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on marginalized communities, often due to historical and ongoing discrimination.

Environmental justice encompasses a range of principles, including equity in the distribution of environmental benefits and burdens, equal access to environmental information and decision-making, and meaningful involvement of affected communities in environmental decision-making.

Redlining is the practice of denying financial services or insurance to certain areas, often based on racial or ethnic composition. This practice has historically resulted in the concentration of hazardous facilities in or near marginalized communities.

Environmental justice issues encompass a wide range of concerns, including the siting of hazardous facilities in marginalized communities, the construction of infrastructure projects that disproportionately impact certain populations, and the lack of access to clean air, water, and other environmental resources.

Meaningful involvement of affected communities in environmental decision-making can take a variety of forms, including public participation, stakeholder engagement, and community-based decision-making.

Achieving environmental justice faces a range of challenges, including the lack of political will, the influence of powerful industries, and the historical and ongoing legacy of discrimination.

The environmental justice movement is a social movement that seeks to address environmental injustice and promote environmental equity for all.

The environmental justice movement has achieved a number of notable successes, including the Love Canal movement, the Warren County PCB contamination case, and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Climate change disproportionately impacts marginalized communities, a phenomenon known as climate injustice, climate inequality, or climate racism.

Climate justice encompasses a range of concerns, including the increased vulnerability of marginalized communities to extreme weather events, the lack of access to clean energy in rural and Indigenous communities, and the disproportionate impact of air pollution on communities of color.

Environmental justice investment is the practice of investing in marginalized communities to address environmental injustice and promote environmental equity.

Environmental justice investments can take a variety of forms, including investing in renewable energy projects in low-income communities, providing grants to community organizations working on environmental justice issues, and funding programs to improve air quality in communities of color.

Environmental justice policymaking is the process of developing policies and programs that address environmental injustice and promote environmental equity.

Environmental justice policies can take a variety of forms, including requiring industries to reduce their emissions of air pollutants in communities of color, providing financial assistance to low-income communities for energy efficiency upgrades, and investing in public transportation in underserved communities.

Environmental justice monitoring and evaluation is the process of monitoring and evaluating the progress of environmental justice efforts.