Rooted in Resolution: Building a Grassroots Infrastructure for Environmental Justice and Climate Resilience (Core Science Keynote)

Across the Gulf Coast Region, Black communities are disproportionately harmed by toxic pollution from the oil and gas industry and its derivative plastic, pesticide, and petrochemical manufacturers. These industrial operations release greenhouse gas pollution that contributes to the climate crisis, where the same fence line communities are more vulnerable to major storms, floods, heat waves, and sea level rise worsened by industries that accelerate land subsidence and increase coastal erosion. The harm and vulnerability experienced by residents are either omitted from or obscured by data collected for environmental, public health and climate policies. To make matters worse, governmental decisions frequently target the communities for increasing levels of pollution and associated health and flood risks from industrial and transportation projects.

The DSCEJ has for the last 30+ years been working on a resolution to this structural phenomena that is resistant to change. This presentation will showcase the DSCEJ theory of change and its incorporation into our work that increases CBO capacity to participate in our democracy and build resilient communities.