Climate Justice

Examples:

Kivalina

The small indigenous village of Kivalina sits on a narrow finger on the western coast of Alaska, far from sprawling cities, coal plants and factories. It isn’t bothered by smog, or the toxic fumes of an oblivious industrial neighbor. The community’s kids don’t have to contend with gangs and crime, or unsafe factories near their playgrounds.

Yet it is estimated that in less than a decade, this small indigenous island village of 377 will disappear. Completely.

http://www.triplepundit.com/special/skeo-environmental-justice/climate-justice/

Isle de Jean Charles

“We’re going to lose all our heritage, all our culture,” lamented Chief Albert Naquin of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw, the tribe to which most Isle de Jean Charles residents belong. “It’s all going to be history.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/03/us/resettling-the-first-american-climate-refugees.html

Cancer Alley

There have been so many cases of cancer, so much inexplicable illness and death, that the corridor has become known as Cancer Alley, an 85-mile stretch between Baton Rouge and New Orleans that is home to more than 150 plants and refineries. Studies conducted in Louisiana and throughout the country show that the poor and, in particular, poor African Americans, are more likely to live near industrial plants and are exposed to toxic pollutants at a rate much higher than more affluent whites.

http://www.msnbc.com/interactives/geography-of-poverty/se.html

Organizations:

The International Institute of Climate Action and Theory

In 2011, IICAT was created with the publication of this mission statement: “In a world beset by climate change, everything, including environmental, media, social and literary theory, must be revised and reconsidered.”

http://www.iicat.org/climate-justice-movement/

The NAACP- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Environmental injustice, including the proliferation of climate change, has a disproportionate impact on communities of color and low income communities in the United States and around the world. The NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice Program was created to support community leadership in addressing this human and civil rights issue.

http://www.naacp.org/issues/environmental-justice/

The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice

Climate justice links human rights and development to achieve a human-centred approach, safeguarding the rights of the most vulnerable people and sharing the burdens and benefits of climate change and its impacts equitably and fairly. Climate justice is informed by science, responds to science and acknowledges the need for equitable stewardship of the world’s resources.

http://www.mrfcj.org/principles-of-climate-justice/