Giving Compass' Take:

•  Yvette Cabrera, writing for Grist, describes significant environmental justice developments happening at the national and local level across the United States. 

• How is your philanthropy tied to environmental justice? 

• Read about Oakland's environmental justice movement.

2020 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for those working with communities who experience both the causes and effects of climate change most acutely. From proposed federal legislation like the “Environmental Justice for All Act” circulating in Congress, to court decisions that could force the Environmental Protection Agency to more robustly investigate civil rights complaints, this year promises to foreground efforts to hold the government accountable for the unequal impacts of pollution, climate change, and extreme weather.

Grist reached out to environmental justice experts, advocates, and activists across the country to compile a list of key developments to follow this year, including new laws, policies, and regulations; key court decisions to track; and notable grassroots work in communities that are combating everything from air pollution to harmful chemicals.

  • National level
    • In their efforts to continue fighting climate change in 2020, large environmental organizations are emphasizing “bigger, deeper coalitions” with diverse grassroots groups — coalitions united in seeking accountability from polluters.
    • New federal environmental justice bills aim to strengthen legal protections, including civil rights, for communities facing environmental hazards and inequities.
    • In 2020, courts could force the EPA to uphold its duty to thoroughly investigate civil rights complaints.
  • Community level 
    • A collaborative effort in Texas will produce real-time air quality data.
    • A pioneering data collection program in California will ramp up air pollution control efforts.
    • South Carolina residents are reimagining former industrial sites as green spaces for renewable energy production.
    • Alaska may join other states and cities in banning hazardous flame retardant chemicals.

Read the full article about environmental justice by Yvette Cabrera at Grist.