Restore ‘Our’ Earth - The Intersectionality of Environmentalism
Earth Day brings light to climate issues but forgets a vital component. Underrepresented groups are disproportionately affected by environmental disasters, and this cannot be forgotten in the climate conversation.
Earth Day, since the first movement in 1970, stands to educate and activate the environmental movement worldwide. It is celebrated every year on the 22nd of April, where groups across the world run events to bring to light climate issues and injustices, with a new theme every year. 2020 focused on climate action as a celebration of the 50th Earth Day, while this year’s theme is titled “Restore Our Earth”.
“The theme is based on the emerging concept that rejects the idea that our only options to save the planet are to mitigate or adapt to the impacts of climate change and other environmental damage. Scientists, non-governmental organizations, business, and governments worldwide now are looking at natural system processes and emerging green technologies to restore the world’s ecosystems and forests, conserve and rebuild soils, improve farming practices, restore wildlife populations and rid the world’s oceans of plastics.”
“Restoration also brings hope, itself an important ingredient in the age of COVID-19.”
But is it that easy, and are we putting our focus in the right place? Does this message, and the way in which Earth Day and similar causes work, speak for us all?
The theme of this year's Earth Day is Restore Our Earth, but I hope this article makes you think about what 'our' really means. Earth Day seems to focus on 'our' being holistic, but from researching intersectional environmentalism, it seems the earth is a very different place for underrepresented groups.
Illustration by Amelia Brooks.
Illustration by Amelia Brooks.
An article published in The New Republic in 2017 explored the idea that Earth Day wasn’t digging deep enough, was blatantly ignoring the fact that populations across the world are very differently affected by the issues facing our planet and has not been inclusive. Intersectional Environmentalism is a term that was coined by activist and eco-communicator Leah Thomas in 2020 during the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement following the murder of George Floyd. “Intersectional” was originally defined by Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, originally referring to the oppression of African-American women in the feminist movement, and refers to the oppression related to gender, sex, class, race, sexuality, religion, disability and physical appearance. This forms the foundation on which Intersectional Environmentalism is built. All movements have some form of intersectionality. Intersectional Environmentalism is an inclusive form of environmentalism that identifies the injustices done to vulnerable and oppressed communities. Leah Thomas noted that “[Intersectional Environmentalism] identifies the ways in which injustices happening to marginalised communities and the earth are interconnected.”
It is noted that the environmental community participates in what is known as existential exceptionalism; the tendency to see climate change, racism and oppression of underrepresented groups as separate and unrelated, when they are intertwined.
People all around the world live with differing levels of environmental problems every day. Those living in low income, underrepresented and indigenous populations face the worst of it. Earth Day has been noted by Anthony Rogers-Wright, organising director at Environmental Action as a “white person thing”, implying a lack of understanding from those in positions of privilege on how Earth Day’s focal issues, such as climate change and restoration, affect minorities.
Existential exceptionalism is the tendency to see climate change, racism and oppression as unrelated, when they are intertwined. Illustrations by Graphics and Grain.
Image of Climate Refugees fleeing from Bangladesh in 2014. Photo from Adaptation Fund, Flickr.
How does it affect minorities?
- St James Parish, Louisiana - also known as “Cancer Alley” is home to a predominantly Black community. Due to the petrochemical plants in the area, residents are at the highest risk of developing cancer in the whole of the United States of America.
- Indigenous communities have been forced off of their land or been harmed by conservation programs, often suffering violence and displacement without consultation when renewable projects are placed on their land.
Protest posters referring to the Flint Water Crisis. Image by wolfy138, Flickr.
- Climate Refugees - between 2008 and 2015, it’s estimated that climate-related events such as floods, hurricanes and droughts have displaced 22.5 million people from their homes. More protection is imperative for the future, especially in areas without the funds or infrastructure to rebuild following disasters.
- Underrepresented and low-income families and groups are statistically more likely to live in areas badly affected by busy roads, toxic waste, landfill and air pollution. A paper published in 2011 discussed groups with the highest exposure pathways to chemical, physical and psychosocial environmental risks - children, Native Americans, minorities, rural and urban poor, recognising that environmental risks are not uniformly distributed across groups of people and that some groups have better access to resources such as health care than others. “Environmental risks are not uniformly distributed across groups of people. Age, poverty, and minority status place some groups at a disproportionately high risk for environmental disease.”
- Other groups affected include Women, people with disabilities and LGBTQ+ communities with links to water shortages, human-rights abuses, sexual violence and being denied relief during natural disasters due to beliefs, gender and sexual orientation.
Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Gulfport Mississippi. Image by Glen B. Stewart, Flickr.
- Flint Water Crisis - drinking water in the city of Flint, Michigan was contaminated with lead and Legionnaires disease, causing over 100,000 residents to be exposed to elevated levels of lead.
- White people cause the most air pollution of all racial-ethnic groups in the USA, but Black and Hispanic people are exposed to the consequences of this pollution at far greater levels.
- Access to green spaces is strongly associated with higher education and income, with racial and ethnic factors showing a negative association with access to urban green spaces.
- Flooding hits Black neighbourhoods disproportionately harder during flooding as a result of hurricanes, such as Hurricane Katrina.
Earth Day, at its inception, had an equality message at its heart, wanting to “marry science with social justice activism”. The cause recognised that environmental problems were not distributed equally across race, socio-economic circumstances, gender, politics, sexuality and other marginalised groups. In the past, Earth Day was both intersectional and effective - causing the creation of a number of environmental protection acts and organisations. Earth Day needs to return to its roots - we need to educate the masses on the effects that the climate crisis, among other environmental issues, has on different communities across the planet. The environmental justice movement is the principle that all people, regardless of race, colour, or national origin deserve the right to live, work and play in a clean environment.
As discussed in the article “Want to be an Environmentalist? Start with Anti-Racism”, a good way to start to tackle this problem is to place their stories at the centre of environmental discussions. Acknowledging the intersectionality of environmental issues encourages the recognition of existential exceptionalism - these problems are interlinked and should be discussed. This will allow for a more inclusive form of environmentalism - bringing groups together across the world to start discussing these issues, amplifying diverse voices to learn how to better support underrepresented groups affected by environmental issues. You can also look into local environmental policies and how you can get involved - the biggest changes need to be made from the top of the ladder.
“This is about how we implement solutions, how we replicate and scale them; it’s about communities and governments and corporations changing the way they do things–solving the climate crisis is about everything. So we need to find ways that everyone can be a part of this transformation.” - Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
Other important reading and concepts to explore:
Want To Be An Environmentalist? Start With Anti-Racism. Glamour
Earth Day Is Too White and Out of Touch With Reality. The New Republic
We Can't Solve the Climate Crisis Unless Black Lives Matter. Time
Fourth National Climate Assessment. Statistics show how people of colour disproportionately bear climate impacts, from storms to heatwaves to pollution.
I’m a Black climate expert. Racism derails our efforts to save the planet. The Washington Post.
The Difference Between Ecofeminism & Intersectional Environmentalism, The Good Trade
Intersectional Environmentalism: Why it’s crucial for climate justice, Loughborough University Blogs
Thank you to Amelia Brooks for her illustrations. You can find more of her work on Instagram at @amelia__brooks.
Thank you also to Annabelle from Graphics and Grain for allowing me to use her illustrations in this piece. You can find more of her work on Instagram at @graphicsandgrain and @intersectionalenvironmentalist.
Emily Gilford
Emily is a Zoology BSc (Hons) and Ecology MSc graduate from the University of Exeter, currently based in Cornwall. Her interests lie in animal behaviour and blue health. Over the past few years, Emily has managed The Beach Clean Project in Cornwall, connecting people over a mutual love of keeping our coastlines clean. She enjoys being out with her camera spotting wildlife and learning as much as she can. Emily is an online article editor and contributor here at Bloom in Doom. Find her on Instagram @emilygilford