Irfan, Ans and Martinez, Deniss. (November 4, 2021). Colonialism, the climate crisis, and the need to center Indigenous voices. Retrieved January 27, 2022, from Colonialism, the climate crisis, and the need to center Indigenous voices (ehn.org)

Climate adaptation is incredibly urgent across the US and the world, but it is especially important in Indigenous communities. Despite this, Indigenous people have often been left out of climate policy, even though they are some of the most affected by climate change. Indigenous people have long been active in climate activism, and yet they are most frequently excluded. Climate change itself is rooted in colonialism and the exploitation of native people and their land. Currently, some of the best ways to help indigenous people with climate justice are land stewardship, long-term financing, land reparations, and indigenous decision making. 

Indigenous communities are some of the most affected by climate change. Their land and rights have long been exploited and degraded, and yet even today indigenous voices are not being listened to. This is just one example of environmental inequality, and how Indigenous people are often ignored in favor of white settlers and colonists. This should not be happening; indigenous people tend to be very educated on the environment and take care to show their land respect. Most white colonists cannot say the same. After reading this article, I realized just how often indigenous voices have been shut out. They have crucial ideas on climate adaptation and mitigation, yet they are rarely listened to. I feel that we (non-indigenous people) need to do more to uplift indigenous voices, especially on climate related issues, and we also need to try to remedy the environmental injustice faced by most indigenous Americans.

Steiner, Mark. (January 20, 2022). Water protectors in Hawaii confront dangerous environmental polluter: the US military. Retrieved January 27, 2022, from Water protectors in Hawaii confront dangerous environmental polluter: the US military (therealnews.com)

The US Navy’s Red Hill Fuel Storage Facility has been leaking hundreds of thousands of gallons of petroleum into the aquifer that provides drinking water for thousands of Hawaii residents. This has been going on for years, even since the facility’s construction, and native Hawaiian residents have been speaking out about it to no avail. The facility didn’t pause operating until military families living in the area reported having symptoms of petroleum poisoning. Native Hawaiians have been fighting for their land and for their rights, but the US military is rarely held accountable for their operations in Oahu.

Upon reading this article, it is clear that native Hawaiians are being disproportionately affected by the issue of petroleum in their aquifers. Despite Hawai’ians speaking out their concerns for years, the US did nothing until families of their own members started complaining as well. This goes to show that the US military, and the US federal government in general, isn’t listening to native voices. I was really shocked after reading this article. I hadn’t heard anything about petroleum contaminating Oahu’s biggest aquifer before reading the article, despite it being a massive issue. It made me wonder why something so devastating hasn’t been more widely shared. The US military’s presence on the Hawaiian islands has caused a lot of lasting environmental damage, and yet it is rarely (if ever) spoken about. This is definitely a problem, and I feel that more should be done to hold the US military accountable for their actions against environmental justice for native Hawaiians.

Bohlke, Lily. (October 8, 2021). Michigan community faces water crisis, calls for lead pipe replacement. Retrieved January 27, 2022, from Michigan community faces water crisis, calls for lead pipe replacement | Detroit News | Detroit | Detroit Metro Times

Many drinking water systems across the US contain lead pipes. However, communities primarily made up of people of color are being disproportionately affected by this. Removing these lead pipes would be incredibly beneficial; since lead can affect children’s ability to read and write, removal of the pipes would benefit children’s education. Environmental agencies have been working to get safe drinking water for primarily black communities in southwestern Michigan, as the area has reported extremely high lead levels over the past few years. Many areas like this, with mainly people of color inhabitants, have been losing investments over the years, so it is crucial they get the support that they need.

This article is really closely tied to the topic of environmental justice, as it focuses on black communities (and other communities made up of people of color) being disproportionately affected by environmental crises. Lead contamination of drinking water is incredibly dangerous, and to make matters worse, some of these communities have been without safe water for years, and yet little has been done to fix this. I found the article to be really eye opening. I had heard of the “lead in water” issue in the past, such as what happened in Flint, Michigan, but I hadn’t realized that the crisis wasn’t one faced by all communities in the area. Upon learning about this, I’m upset to hear that our federal government hasn’t done much to fix this, despite multiple campaigns from environmental activists and the government’s general knowledge of the issue.

McCormick, Erin. (December 15, 2021). How much air pollution do you live with? It may depend on your skin color. Retrieved January 27, 2022, from How much air pollution do you live with? It may depend on your skin color | Environment | The Guardian

The amount of pollution people are exposed to could be related to the color of one’s skin. When testing the levels of air pollution in various locations, it became clear that areas where people of color resided had more airborne pollutants. This disparity becomes even more apparent when one looks at urban areas; areas primarily made up of black and brown communities have significantly worse air quality and higher levels of pollutants in the air. While efforts have been made to improve air quality, there are still unequal levels of air pollution.

This article is related to environmental science and environmental justice because it focuses on air pollution; specifically how it disproportionately affects communities made up of people of color. Areas where a lot of people of color live have significantly worse air quality than areas where their white counterparts live do. I wasn’t entirely surprised hearing this since I had heard about this disparity before, but I was still upset to hear about it. Whether it’s purposeful or not, it is entirely unjust that frequently discriminated against communities have such poor air quality. That poor air quality can have lasting effects, causing health issues such as lung diseases. This article made me realize just how disproportionately people of color are being affected by the air quality; while many places have poor air quality, it is clear that black and brown communities are being forced to take the brunt of it.

Shell in Nigeria: Polluted communities ‘can sue in English courts’. (2021, February 12). Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-56041189 

This article is about the recent ruling by the UK Supreme Court, which overturned a court of appeals ruling that says that people within a community in Nigeria can now sue Shell because of the oil pollution that they have caused in the area.  Shell, as a corporation, is responsible for 50% of the oil pollution in the waterways, which affects many families and fishermen who rely on this waterway for food and their livelihoods. This landmark ruling is significant, ShellAs because it shows that the UK is now taking the fight for Environmental Justice a little more seriously when it comes down to issues with corporations. Nigerians’ money made from this lawsuit could be enough to clean the pollution within their waterways. Despite this, many community members in this area have stated that the money will not bring back what they have lost, which is clean waterways, fish, and their community. This lawsuit is one of many that has recently been launched against Shell as a corporation that has been responsible for a lot of the oil spills and pollution in Nigeria as a country.

This article is really indicative of what’s going on in the world with environmental justice because it represents the intersection between companies who believe that they are right and who are disregarding the environment in these small communities. These communities are being put at a disadvantage because of things that are outside of their control and are not getting taken completely seriously. In this regard, this article makes me happy because companies are being held accountable for what they’ve done for so many years which I think is really important and there needs to be justice on that end. At the same time, it does seem apparent that there needs to be more done and there are a number of stories like this one and those also need to be solved.  This story is a step in the right direction for environmental justice, but it points to there being a lot of steps that still need to be taken. 

‘What’s at stake is the life of every being’: Saving the Brazilian Cerrado. (2021, February 15). Retrieved from https://news.mongabay.com/2021/02/whats-at-stake-is-the-life-of-every-being-saving-the-brazilian-cerrado/ 

This article covers recent news about the Cerrado in Brazil: a biosphere home to many indigenous people and indigenous species of plants and animals. The area is currently in the news because Brazil’s new president (who is incredibly anti-pro-environmental policy) has hailed this area as an arid unfertile space that requires development. This designation invalidates the homes of the many people who live there, and the risk of development causes further strain on the environment.  52% of the Cerrado has been victim to deforestation in the past years for agricultural use. The Cerrado is currently the second-largest biosphere in Brazil outside of the Amazon. The improper designation that this environment needs to be altered or changed is incredibly false and pushes a harmful narrative. There have been many protests happening recently in the Cerrado led by indigenous people protecting their communities and improper land use.

 This article shows how much further the fight for environmental justice is within our world. In pieces like these, it becomes evident that most people are attempting to save for the environment is naive and not everyone has the environment’s best interests at heart.  This situation is also frustrating because the indigenous people who have lived in the Cerrado,  are people who truly care for the environment and are the people who are best at taking care of their environment. The idea that development is needed to save these environments or to use this land that might not be fertile is false. Not only has this environment been inaccurately labeled, but the government is also practically feeding lies to Brazilians to promote development that will not be sustainable and can cause a lot of harm to the environment. This issue is an essential environmental justice one because if citizens are unable to understand what is truly at stake they’re going to be less likely to care about issues of environmental justice themselves. 

Yasir, S. (2021, February 15). Climate Activist Jailed in India as Government Clamps Down on Dissent. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/15/world/asia/climate-activist-jailed-india.html 

This article covered the current Farmers protests in India by the Shik people and the arrest by the Indian government of 21-year-old girl Disha Ravi. Ravi is being accused of distributing a tool kit of resources for the protests. This tool kit is a Google doc that was created by Greta Thunberg,  Ravi is claiming that there she did not distribute this tool kit, and at most edited two lines of it. The article gives some background on the farmer’s protest in India and how the government is trying to silence people who are protesting legislation set to remove protection from farmer’s trading to the free market. Overall most of these protests have been peaceful but there has been one that got slightly violent. The arrest of Disha Ravi is being hailed as a Crackdown on free speech by the Indian government and a protest of environmental justice.

 While this issue is not an environmental justice issue in the traditional sense it is the convergence between Justice and Environmental action. Disha Ravi is a climate activist who has put a lot of her life into trying to bring more action towards the issues of environmental justice and getting young people involved in the race against climate change.  Her arrest speaks to larger societal issues within India and how the government is not all working to combat climate change.  This article saddened me because in most places news of environmental justice is typically good, while this environmental justice issue is the antithesis of progress and it shows how we are still needing to convince people that environmental justice is a larger issue that needs to be taken seriously.  Personally, it seems evident that other nations should stop in at this moment to help Disha Ravi. This treatment of individuals who are simply protesting for what is just in the world is completely ridiculous and needs to be incorporated into larger issues of environmental justice. 

Porter, J. (2021, February 11). Perspective | The problem of environmental racism in Mexico today is rooted in history. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/02/11/problem-environmental-racism-mexico-today-is-rooted-history/ 

This article discusses the similarities between the environmental racism that is faced in the United States on the environmental racism that exists in Mexico and discusses how the Black and Afro-Indigenous communities on the Costa Chica, east of Acapulco, and Guerrero are more susceptible to environmental harm such as bad air quality, water pollution and lack of natural resources because of the systemic racism that exists in Mexico.  The article gives background on the history of enslavement in Mexico and tells the story of the African slaves that were brought over to Mexico to be enslaved and work on plantations and how they freed themselves and formed small communities to be able to support themselves.  Unfortunately, these communities lack funds, and adequate resources to pull themselves out of poverty, and systemic environmental racism is more prevalent there.  The article concludes with the idea that systemic racism needs to be fixed in Mexico in order to save the environment or at least remove the disproportionate harm from the predominantly black communities.

 I was a little shocked by this article mainly because I did not realize how prevalent systemic racism is in Mexico, as the diversity in the US always seemed to be much greater than in Mexico. I thought as Mexico is a more homogeneous country and forgot that the same histories of racial discrimination and slavery still exist in the United States are also a problem in Mexico. This article is fascinating mostly because I had no idea of the history of systemic racism in Mexico and not knowing there were predominantly black communities in Mexico.  I believe that stories like this need to be told and that for environmental justice to occur in many locations it is a necessity to not only listen to the voices of these people who are demanding justice but learn why they are demanding justice

UN Environment Assembly set to galvanize global action for nature. (2021, February 10). Retrieved from https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/un-environment-assembly-set-galvanize-global-action-nature 

This article was an interview with the president of the United Nations Environment assembly about the changing goals for this year and the progress that was made. Within the article, Mr. Sveinung Rotevatn who is the president of the UNEA-5 says that while we are not on track to meet our goal to keep global warming under two-degree, that does not mean there has not been progress. Rotevatn covered how carbon capture has become incredibly popular in Norway, and how there is a link between environmental justice and the expansion of these policies. He talked about environmental justice as a global issue, because of the discrepancies of where the majority of environmental damage has taken effect. The article also covered how environmental justice must include a focus on human rights and gender inclusion. 

It was interesting to read an interview with the current president of the United Nations Environment Assembly. I agreed with what he said within his interview and believe that there does need to be a push for gender inequality to become a larger part of the fight for Environmental Justice. Rotevatn seemed knowledgeable about the issues he was speaking to and it is incredibly important that he does understand the importance of environmental justice. I wish he spoke more about the long-term discrepancies in who will face the most environmental justice, as there was an opportunity for him to shed additional light on these issues that he missed. I also wish that this body had put out a plan on how they feel tackling environmental justice would be best handled. The article itself was interesting because it pointed out the shift between different environmental policies and how much further we have to go to save our climate.