Environmental Justice and Climate Justice, with Dr. Sacoby Wilson and Dr. Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò

81 minutes

This episode of Warm Regards focuses on the intersections, but also the disconnects, between environmental justice and climate justice movements. First, Jacquelyn and Ramesh talk with Dr. Sacoby Wilson about his work with communities throughout the United States who are facing the consequences of environmental racism, and his beliefs that scientists’ publications are not enough to enact meaningful change for communities struggling with environmental injustice. We then shift to a more global frame, speaking with Dr. Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò on climate colonialism, and how climate change is inextricably linked with the histories of colonialism, and how we can avoid continuing that legacy in a warming future.

To view a transcript of this episode, see our Medium page:
https://ourwarmregards.medium.com/environmental-justice-and-climate-justice-with-dr-sacoby-wilson-and-dr-dr-ol%C3%BAf%E1%BA%B9%CC%81mi-o-t%C3%A1%C3%ADw%C3%B2-4c9ac0a8587d

Show Notes
Environmental justice factsheet from the University of Michigan:
http://css.umich.edu/factsheets/environmental-justice-factsheet

World Resources Institute report on the largest emitters:
https://www.wri.org/blog/2014/11/6-graphs-explain-world-s-top-10-emitters

Why climate change is an environmental justice issue:
https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2020/09/22/climate-change-environmental-justice/

What is climate justice?
https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2020/07/what-is-climate-justice/

Climate change is also a racial justice problem:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2020/06/29/climate-change-racism/

The US is the richest country in the world, with the largest wealth gap:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/23/business/united-states-is-the-richest-country-in-the-world-and-it-has-the-biggest-wealth-gap.html

For more about how the response to Hurricane Katrina caused gentrification in New Orleans:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-12/new-orleans-gentrification-tied-to-hurricane-katrina

We still don’t know how many people died in Hurricane Katrina:
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/we-still-dont-know-how-many-people-died-because-of-katrina/

Don’t repeat the mistakes of the Katrina recovery:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/14/opinion/hurricane-katrina-irma-harvey.html

For more about how communities of color are marginalized in terms of solar power:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/solar-powers-benefits-dont-shine-equally-on-everyone/

To read more about Dr. Sacoby WIlson’s work, visit his University of Maryland website:
https://sph.umd.edu/people/sacoby-wilson

Dr. Wilson directs the Community Engagement, Environmental Justice and Health Lab
https://sph.umd.edu/laboratory-resources/community-engagement-environmental-justice-and-health-ceejh

The Lab can also be found on Medium and Twitter:
https://ceejhlab.medium.com
https://twitter.com/ceejhlab

Fumes Across the Fenceline
https://www.naacp.org/climate-justice-resources/fumes-across-fence-line/

Coal Blooded
https://www.naacp.org/climate-justice-resources/coal-blooded/

Toxic Waste and Race (1987)
https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1310/ML13109A339.pdf

Toxic Waste and Race at Twenty
https://www.ucc.org/environmental-ministries/environmental-ministries_toxic-waste-20/

Yessenia Funes's story on Earther
https://earther.gizmodo.com/im-scared-study-links-cancer-alley-air-pollution-to-hi-1843484042

To learn more about Dr. Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò and his work, see his website:
http://www.olufemiotaiwo.com

You can also follow him on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/OlufemiOTaiwo

Selected publications by Dr. Táíwò:
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/10/10/case-for-climate-reparations-crisis-migration-refugees-inequality/

https://theconversation.com/how-a-green-new-deal-could-exploit-developing-countries-111726

“The Great Climate Migration,” an article by ProPublica and the New York Times, recommended by Dr. Táíwò
https://www.propublica.org/series/the-great-climate-migration

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