Embedded Files
Excerpt from my praxis about justice
Excerpt from my praxis about justice
My understanding of justice has been shaped substantially by the coursework of the EJ Semester. The concept of justice firstly means that each person receive equal opportunity and protection under the law regardless of their gender, race, religion, or socioeconomic status. However, I have gained a deeper understanding of justice with historical and environmental context and a greater comprehension of how systemic inequality has been reinforced by institutions of power protected by the law. This has made my definition of justice more complex and relating in a greater way to intentional inequity in environmental degradation. Justice must include the basic human right to a clean and healthy environment. The concept of environmental justice links efforts to preserve the earth to necessary contexts of intersectionality and preexisting social justice movements to ensure that the steps we take forward are ones of restorative intent that center the voices and needs of all in prospective solutions. Justice is additionally complicated when viewed from a systemic standpoint. While equity functions within broken systems, liberation seeks to rebuild a system anew.
Evidence of Learning
Evidence of Learning
1A: Critical Consciousness
1A: Critical Consciousness
EJ Changemakers recognize oppressive social forces shaping society and are moved to take action against them.
1B: Advocacy
1B: Advocacy
EJ Changemakers must know how to use their voices to convince others to adopt sustainable, just, equitable, and collective behavior.
1C: Collective Action
1C: Collective Action
EJ Changemakers must work with a community coalition to transform institutional and political policies to restore environmental justice.
My personal praxis on Environmental Justice marks my personal understanding and beliefs on intersectionality, environmental justice, and change making as it has developed throughout my time at the Ej Semester. It marks the expanding of my critical consciousness through both research and personal reformation of my beliefs.
Political advocacy: Community Solar Letter to Shontel Brown
Political advocacy from citizens is a hugely important aspect of our democracy. I have written to several establishments including Exxon Mobile, Starbucks, and BP advocating for cleaner practices. My most recent letter was to my district representative, Shontel Brown, on the issue of community solar. This letter is linked here.
The speech I gave for the Fridays for the Future protest was centered around informing the Laurel population of an aspect of House Bill 507 that would require Ohio State Parks to lease their land for gas and oil development. In my speech, I urged my community to stay aware of the political decisions being made around them and to continue to use their voices and actions as citizens to protect the environment.
I read and reflected on these sources to enhance my understanding of capitalism within America. I felt I deepened my critical consciousness with this endeavor by learning more about how powerful systems such as economic structures can enforce justice or injustice.
I helped author a letter to representative Chris Ronayne advocating for more protected green space in Cleveland. I leveraged my voice to ask a person in power to protect green spaces specifically in urban areas, thus upholding equity with the given health and community benefits of green space.
Visit to the Statehouse
In 2023, the Environmental Justice semester combined with two other Cleveland schools to travel to the Ohio Statehouse with Solar United Neighbors to show our support and lobby for community solar power. While there, we expressed our passions for equity and spoke with state representatives to convey our beliefs in access to cheap, green energy sources for Ohio citizens. After this visit, I rallied in 2024 for the same cause in front of AEP (this can be seen on the community page).
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