"How can we teach one another to keep our power and use it together for the betterment of all?"
Marie Harrison, environmental justice activist, March 4, 1994
The environmental justice movement grew out of the Civil Rights movement, led primarily by Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) in the 1980s who wanted to call attention to polluting industries, power plants and waste disposal areas and their proximity to communities of color.
In 1994, the federal government defined environmental justice as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies. To learn more about the history of environmental justice in the US, you can visit the U.S. EPA's Environmental Justice Timeline.
Environmental justice can be a complex and sensitive topic to learn and teach. The resources on this page can provide some guidance. Whether you are teaching about environmental justice to youth or adults, review some recommended practices and discussion agreements.
These lessons can be adapted to online distance-learning platforms, and can be integrated into environmental science, social studies, government, geography, and health classes, among others. Visit the Coastal Commission's Resources for Educators page for additional resources on this and other topics.
A flexible five-lesson unit for grades 9-12. Students learn about environmental justice in California and elsewhere in the US by studying communities struggling with environmental inequities and how those communities have fought for justice. Supports California Next Generation Science, Common Core, and History-Social Science standards. Includes lesson plans, slides, student response Google forms, and printable worksheets for in-person or remote instruction. Written by Coastal Commission staff led by Bekkah Scharf, and reviewed by Rachel Faulkner (anti-racism consultant), Laura Diaz (Educators Collective for Environmental Justice), and Estrella Risinger (Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education). Download the unit (PDF). This PDF includes links to all elements described above. Updated July 15, 2024. Please send feedback on this unit to coast4u@coastal.ca.gov.
A challenge for middle and high school students to create a video responding to a prompt about the climate crisis, which often relates to environmental and climate justice.
A story map created by CalEPA racial equity team, to help staff across the agency and the public explore the connection between racist land use practices of the 1930s and the persistence of environmental injustice. Grades 9-12+.
Investigate the history of racist land use policies and environmental inequalities, and explore the present-day realities of environmental injustices in four US cities. A collaboration of the Digital Scholarship Lab at the University of Richmond, The Science Museum of Virginia, and ESRI. Associated lessons: What is the relationship between redlining and the environmental quality of a neighborhood?, How has the practice of redlining affected the physical environment of neighborhoods? Grades 9-12+.
Redlining was the practice of categorically denying access to mortgages not just to individuals but to whole neighborhoods. On this website you can explore redlining maps of major cities across the U.S., search across the maps for specific terms, including those that highlight environmental burdens and amenities, and read contextual introductions of many cities including Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego, and San Francisco. Grades 9-12+.
A mapping tool created by CalEPA Office of Environmental Health Hazards Assessment to identify California communities most affected by multiple sources of pollution. CalEnviroScreen uses environmental, health, and socioeconomic information to produce scores for every census tract in California, which are mapped to compare how pollution burden varies among communities. Prior knowledge of percentiles and geography may be helpful. Grades 6-12+. Activities to consider:
A project-based unit in California Coastal Voices from the California Coastal Commission, for grades 6-12. Explores the physical, political, economic and social obstacles that prevent public access to beaches and other outdoor areas as students create an access plan for a specific park.
A resource from Learning for Justice for grades 6-12. Examine an editorial cartoon which addresses the connections between poverty and damage to the natural environment.
