Introduction

Climate Connections: Environmental Racism

Intro

Hi and welcome to our first-ever Climate Connections series! We’re diving into intricacies of how racial justice and climate change are connected and directly impacting each other in a system that continues to hurt and oppress. Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term “intersectionality” to ensure these connections are not overlooked. In a 10-week series, we will focus on the intersectionality of racial justice, climate change, and other important global issues as an opportunity to unlearn, reflect, and expand our knowledge. Leading with curiosity and humility, our objective is to connect the dots and dig deeper into the pervasiveness of racism and its impact on our planet.

We will share a range of readings, videos, and opportunities to support, donate, and recognize Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) who are leading these efforts. We value the work to turn over every rock possible and we hope you join us in the continuing efforts to combat racial injustice and climate change. At Climate Creative, we are a team of unique human beings set on a mission to influence equitable change through art, action and education.

Tip: Consider scheduling time in your week to learn!

You may not have time to read all the articles, watch a documentary, or go down all the rabbit-holes you want to right now. That’s okay. One good way to make time for learning is to literally schedule read, watch, and support sessions throughout your week. 

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Define

Read

Hop Hopkins

Last week, my family and I attended an interfaith rally in Los Angeles in defense of Black life. We performed a group ritual in which we made noise for nine minutes to mark the last moments of George Floyd’s life. My wife, my oldest daughter, and I played African drums to mark those nine minutes with the rhythm of a beating heart. Da-dum, da-dum, da-dum, over and over again.
Read More»

Climate Creative Editor Note
The writer draws me in the beginning and then zooms out to enlighten me about the big picture and the connection between racial injustice and climate change.

Cathy
Octavia E. Butler

When global climate change and economic crises lead to social chaos in the early 2020s, California becomes full of dangers, from pervasive water shortage to masses of vagabonds who will do anything to live to see another day. Fifteen-year-old Lauren Olamina lives inside a gated community with her preacher father, family, and neighbors, sheltered from the surrounding anarchy.
Purchase from a Black-Owned Bookstore»

Climate Creative Editor Note
I personally really connected to the main character and her empathy as a super power. The story takes place in a dystopian world in 2024 that's eerily similar to our current world with a pandemic, climate change, and despair.

Cathy

Watch

Kimberlé Crenshaw

Now more than ever, it’s important to look boldly at the reality of race and gender bias — and understand how the two can combine to create even more harm. Kimberlé Crenshaw uses the term “intersectionality” to describe this phenomenon; as she says, if you’re standing in the path of multiple forms of exclusion, you’re likely to get hit by both. In this moving talk, she calls on us to bear witness to this reality and speak up for victims of prejudice.
Watch On»

Climate Creative Editor Note
Gotta hear it from the source!

Cathy

Landfills, chemical waste facilities and power plants are more often built in poor and minority communities, which don’t have the power or money to advocate for themselves.
Watch On»

Climate Creative Editor Note
I love that this primer creates a historical timeline and uses concrete examples to help really ground me as a viewer. It does all that while also explaining the larger implications of those events at the same time.

Logan

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Climate Creative Editor Note
These accounts continue to teach us and support the values that we want to see in the world!

Cathy
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