Environment

The Basics

• Overview Communities of color are more likely to live next to highways, factories and toxic sites, and are often hit first and hardest by climate disasters. Environmental justice means everyone gets clean air, clean water and a say in what happens to their land. Frontline communities are leading that fight.

By the Numbers

Why this matters, in three numbers.

• People of color are 2.42 times as likely as white people to live in a county that fails all three of the American Lung Association's air pollution grades. (American Lung Association, State of the Air 2026)
• 11.1% of Black children have asthma, about twice the rate of white children (5.6%), and Black Americans die from asthma at more than twice the rate of white Americans. (CDC, Most Recent Asthma Data)
• Black Americans are 40% more likely than others to live where deaths from extreme heat are projected to rise the most. (U.S. EPA, Climate Change and Social Vulnerability report (2021))

Key Terminology

Three words that come up again and again on this topic. See all of our key terminology >

• Environmental Racism — Policies and practices that expose communities of color to more pollution and environmental hazards.
• Environmental Justice — The principle that all people deserve equal protection from pollution and an equal voice in decisions about their land, air and water.
• Decolonization — Dismantling colonial systems and restoring self-determination to colonized peoples, including Indigenous land rights.

Take Action

Three things you can do this month.

• Urge Congress to back the Empowering and Enforcing Environmental Justice Act. This bill (H.R.1553 / S.720) would create a permanent Office of Environmental Justice at the Justice Department after the office was shut down in 2025. It has been in committee since February 2025. Say: "I'm a constituent, and I urge you to cosponsor the Empowering and Enforcing Environmental Justice Act to protect communities facing pollution."
• Give to the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice. Founded by Dr. Beverly Wright in New Orleans, DSCEJ trains residents and students to fight pollution in Black communities along the Gulf Coast.
• Check the pollution burden where you live. EPA took its EJScreen tool offline in 2025, but a volunteer group rebuilt it. Look up your neighborhood and bring what you find to your local council or school board.

Organizations to Follow

These groups are led by people of color and work on the environment every day. Follow them for updates and ways to help.

• WE ACT for Environmental Justice Harlem-born group fighting pollution and climate harm in communities of color. Visit their website, and follow @weact4ej on Instagram to get updates in your newsfeed.
• Indigenous Environmental Network Indigenous grassroots network protecting land, water and climate. Visit their website, and follow @ien_earth on Instagram to get updates in your newsfeed.
• GreenLatinos Latino leaders working on clean air, water and climate policy. Visit their website, and follow @greenlatinos on Instagram to get updates in your newsfeed.

People to Follow

Organizers, scholars and journalists who know this topic. Follow them to keep learning.

• Leah Thomas Founder of Intersectional Environmentalist and author. She makes climate and environmental justice easy to understand and centers people of color in the movement. Follow @greengirlleah on Instagram.
• Mustafa Santiago Ali Environmental justice leader and former EPA official. A longtime environmental justice leader, formerly at the EPA, who pushes for clean air and climate policy that protects frontline communities. Follow @mustafasantiagoali on Instagram.
• Heather McTeer Toney Executive director of Beyond Petrochemicals. She leads Beyond Petrochemicals, which fights new petrochemical plants that threaten Black and brown communities. Follow @heathermcteertoney on Instagram.

Independent Media

Independent newsrooms and newsletters that cover the environment often. Read and donate if you can!

• Grist. Nonprofit newsroom on climate, environmental justice and solutions. Follow @grist on Instagram.
• Inside Climate News. Nonprofit newsroom on climate, energy and pollution. Follow @insideclimatenews on Instagram.
• Atmos. Magazine on climate and culture centering BIPOC and Indigenous voices. Follow @atmos on Instagram.
• What If We Get It Right?. Climate scientist Ayana Elizabeth Johnson on practical climate solutions. Follow @ayanaeliza on Instagram.
• Black Girl Environmentalist. Black women and gender-expansive people building careers in the climate movement. Follow @blackgirlenvironmentalist on Instagram.
• IE Media. Intersectional Environmentalist on environmental justice through art, education and storytelling. Follow @intersectionalenvironmentalist on Instagram.

Read, Watch, Listen

A book, a film and a podcast by creators of color to go deeper.

• Read: Dumping in Dixie: Race, Class, and Environmental Quality by Robert D. Bullard. The classic book showing how Black communities in the South were targeted for toxic waste and polluting industry.
• Watch: When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts by Spike Lee. How Hurricane Katrina and the government's failures devastated Black New Orleans.
• Listen: Uptown Chats by Jaron Burke and Lonnie Portis (WE ACT for Environmental Justice). Two Harlem hosts break down environmental justice news in plain language, twice a month.

Talk About It

Not sure how to bring this up with family or coworkers? Try one of these.

• Have you ever wondered why so many factories and highways are built near Black neighborhoods?
• Do you know anyone with asthma who has a hard time on bad air days?
• If a big storm hit here, who do you think would get help first?