Environmental Justice

Environmental justice is the fight to address the disproportionate effects of environmental degradation and climate change on people of color, low-income communities and other marginalized groups.

The Power Shift Network views the fight for environmental justice as part of the larger fight for social justice. A social justice framework can unite our youth efforts with community groups protecting themselves from dirty industries, in a collaborative and diverse movement towards a clean and just energy future for all.

To increase the health and well-being of all people, we need to dismantle the systems of oppression that assign unearned privileges based on race, class, and gender. We need to provide solutions to our energy problems that everyone can participate in and everyone can benefit from, especially those who have suffered the most consequences as a result of our addiction to fossil fuels. It is in everyone’s interest to broaden and diversify the coalition of organizations working toward a clean energy future beyond the traditional “environmental” movement.

Please join us in building an inclusive and powerful movement towards justice.

Environmental Justice Programs & Projects

In the fall of 2017, the Power Shift Network launched Frontlines to Power—a training program to help prepare young climate leaders of color and from frontline communities to run for local office. Learn more about the program (and find out how to apply) here.
Young climate leaders of color collaborated to build a comprehensive Anti-Oppression Resource Bank and Curriculum, designed to provide concrete tools for our members and allies who are looking for concrete ways to center principles of justice and equity in their work. Read this post introducing this important resource, and check out the full curriculum here.

Featured Posts

A quiet struggle for equal rights: the Environmental Justice movement

February 7, 2012

Celia Burke, EJ Editor, Washington, DC

Although I created the title for this post, as an environmental justice advocate, I don’t agree with it. Every environmental justice advocate I know is passionate. Many use a loud voice to tell their stories and to give inspiring messages. Some are more quiet like myself, but what they say is equally as important to the movement. At every chance we get, we try and educate people about the movement. But when I thought of this title, I was thinking about the amount of attention that environmental justice receives. It certainly could be more.

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Twenty Years Later, Is the Executive Order on Environmental Justice Enough?

February 11, 2014

Tina Johnson, Senior Director of Environmental Justice, Energy Action Coalition

343 Twenty years ago today, President Clinton signed Executive Order 12898. This landmark victory for the Environmental Justice movement was the first serious action to address environmental justice at the federal level -- requiring federal agencies to stop minority and low-income populations from being dumped on, polluted on, and incinerated on “disproportionately”.

But does the Order do enough?

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