Hello readers.
Welcome to #ClimateJusticeThursday on CleanbuildVoices!
So, we’re in the middle of a climate crisis, and individuals, organizations, and governments are doing what they can to mitigate its effects and most importantly, create awareness.
Already, for people of color, it’s a different ball game altogether because, even though they experience the adverse effects of the changing climate just like the others – or even more – their stories are either seldom told, and even when they are told, it is either from a surface-level understanding or an outsider perspective.
It is for this reason that our focus on today’s edition of #ClimateJusticeThursday will be on four (4) books that address climate change from a colors perspective, giving insight into the plight of these people and communities as the world races against time to salvage the planet from the impending climate apocalypse.
We hope you enjoy this reading list as much as we do and we are optimistic that it would inspire you to champion the climate justice cause in your own way. In no particular order:
There’s Something in the Water: Environmental Racism in Indigenous and Black Communities – Ingrid R. G. Waldron
This book by Canadian social scientist, Ingrid R.G. Waldron, uses Nova Scotia which is a Canadian province as a case study.
He provides an overall background to environmental racism, justice as well as the history of colonialism and policy in the opening chapters of the book.
Waldron examines the legacy of environmental racism and its health impacts in indigenous and black communities in Canada, and the grassroots resistance activities by indigenous and black communities against the pollution and poisoning of their communities.
According to the book, environmental discrimination cannot be addressed without considering the convergence with race, class, gender, and determinants of health, how they show environmental racism and are supported by the system.
Waldron further demonstrates the ways in which the effects of environmental racism are aggravated by other forms of oppression.
Braiding Sweetgrass – Robin Wall Kimmerer
This book by scientist Robin Wall Kimmerer gives a distinct discussion on the relationship between western science and indigenous knowledge.
Robin evokes ecological consciousness, stating the importance of land for both sustenance and healing, and reminding the reader that if humans make more effort in restoring the land, the land will restore us.
She also states how we the world can tilt towards a new nature perspective, spilling the tea on what we can do to help and protect our land instead of damaging it.
One good thing about this book is the fresh perspective and knowledge it offers readers.
A Bigger Picture: My Fight To Bring a New African Voice To The Climate Crisis – Vanessa Nakate
This book by Ugandan climate justice activist, Vanessa Nakate, captures her climate activism journey in 2019.
Vanessa shares her experiences as an African woman trying to have her voice heard in climate debates.
Having led the voices of other African and underrepresented voices in the global climate movement, Vanessa had said in 2020 that climate activists of color are often erased from these conversations, recalling the incidence where she was cropped out of a photo with Greta Thunberg and other white activists by Associated Press in 2020.
Vanessa had said other activists who had had similar experiences messaged her saying they didn’t have the courage to say anything.
The book brings to the fore how the climate movement drives white supremacy via whitewashing and amplification of the Global North-centered climate change agenda. It also seeks to rid the climate movement of racism and institute a system of diverse voices.
Consumed: The Need For Collective Change: Colonialism, Climate, and Consumerism – Aja Barber
This book by fashion consultant and writer, Aja Barber, is an extension of her existing work which uncovers the exploitative nature of the fashion industry.
Barber further educates readers on the role of colonialism in birthing a racist, unequal and oppressive textile industry, showing readers how the fashion industry drives a neo-colonialist ecosystem via global inequality facilitated by western dominance and high powers.
At the ending part of her book, she gives practical steps which readers can take to reflect on their own consumer habits, challenging them to overcome the capitalist culture of overconsumption.