When I hear the word “environmentalism,” I think of the mainstream (white, male-dominated) narrative that is associated with visiting National Parks and “the great outdoors,” and signing the World Wildlife Fund's petitions to save rare species on the planet. Images from an REI commercial come to my mind, and eloquent John Muir quotes fill my ears. At the same time, I can't help but think about the fact that John Muir was actually a racist (1), and that the conservation-centered environmentalism narrative ignores the deliberate poisoning of low-income, minority communities by nearby fuel companies and other industrial facilities. I also know that the trendy thrift-shopping and mason-jar-carrying movement of sustainability today largely ignores the lifestyle that marginalized people and people of color have been practicing out of necessity for generations. The now-trendy process of fermentation to make things like craft beer and kombucha has actually been in use by humans for thousands of years (anaerobic oxidation actually predates human existence) (2). But it also has a powerful cultural significance in the culinary traditions of indigenous populations around the world, which are frequently left unacknowledged by these fashionable foodie trends.

Fortunately, we've come a long way since the Sierra Club's founding in 1892. In 2015, the Sierra Club's national board of directors voted to rename the Le Conte Memorial Lodge in Yosemite after the recent discovery and subsequent public outcry that Joseph Le Conte, a founding member of the Club, was actually a loud and proud white supremacist (3). In addition, the organization now has numerous justice-centered programs that include environmental justice, equity and inclusion, gender equity, labor and economic justice, as well as responsible trade. However, these waves of change within the mainstream environmental narrative did not just show up with the changing times; they were undoubtedly made possible by the work that grassroots organizers, womxn, and people of color have done to bring attention to the pervasive issues of environmental injustice and racism in this country.

At the level of the University of California, we've gradually come to address the need for representation and perspectives of people of color within the environmental narrative. There are ethnic studies departments, and classes offered that address environmental racism—but this curriculum is not ubiquitous, nor is it enough to address pervasive systematic inequalities of environmental injustice.  

Furthermore, UCLA does not have a student space dedicated to environmentalists of color. Through my research and network as a Carbon Neutrality Initiative Fellow, I have learned about the accomplishments of students at schools such as UC Santa Cruz and UC Berkeley that now have well-established organizations on campus dedicated to providing space for students of color to engage in conversations about environmental racism, justice, and reexamining the definition of sustainability.

I was motivated by the work being done on other campuses, and by the rich conversations I have had with UCLA peers and CNI/GFI colleagues about this issue, so I set out to create something along this thread at UCLA. Given my position as a student engagement fellow for the UC-wide Carbon Neutrality Initiative, I wanted to use my resources to re-center and reframe the conversation around sustainability within UCLA's campus community and create a platform for environmental advocacy that doesn't revolve around trendy “green” practices. 

It's now nearing the end of Winter quarter, and I am thrilled to say that I have gathered an incredible group of like-minded students over the past quarter or so that is coming together as the UCLA Environmentalists of Color Collective. Our joint mission is to promote and co-create a space for marginalized identities to unpack, discuss, and organize for diversity and inclusivity within the mainstream environmentalism movement. We are currently organizing a Climate Justice Forum, open to the entire Los Angeles community, that will be held at the end of April this year. By hosting a Climate Justice Forum, the UCLA Environmentalists of Color Collective hopes to accomplish three things:

1. Raise awareness about the contributions that people of color have made to the environmental sustainability movement,

2. Reframe the definition and values of mainstream environmentalism to be more inclusive of all underrepresented communities, and

3. Stimulate critical dialogue about environmental racism and justice issues at UCLA and beyond.

We are also creating a short documentary that will highlight the ways in which different communities practice and define environmental sustainability. The filmed interviews will be released as a short video series of “teaser trailers” for our upcoming Climate Justice Forum focused on amplifying the environmental narratives of BIPOC (black, indigenous, people of color) identities.

Behind the scenes: filming for the video series.

From these efforts, I hope to inspire UCLA students to form a more permanent conversation on campus surrounding these issues—be it an annual climate justice forum, a student collective, a campus resource center, or in our daily conversations and class curriculum. Our UC-wide journey to carbon neutrality must encompass the efforts and narratives of diverse communities so that we can ensure a more inclusive sustainability movement for all.

The author would like to graciously thank Valeree Catangay, UCLA CNI Fellow, for her comments, suggestions, and edits to this post. I couldn't have done it without you!

Works Cited:

(1) Purdy, J. (2015, August 13). Environmentalism's Racist History. The New Yorker. Retrieved from https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/environmentalisms-racist-history

(2) Cannarella, G. (2016, April 20). Behind Fermentation, a Trend Without Borders. Fine Dining Lovers. Retrieved from https://www.finedininglovers.com/stories/types-of-fermentation/

(3) Brune, M. & Mair, A. (2015). "Re: Request to Re-Name Le Conte Memorial Lodge, Yosemite National Park." The Sierra Club. Retrieved from https://www.sierraclub.org/sites/www.sierraclub.org/files/program/documents/LeConte%20Letter.pdf