Hope and Urgency This past week, the Center for Environmental Justice Media, created by Living on Earth and implemented in partnership with University of Massachusetts Boston, hosted a conference about environmental justice and hope in the context of developing community podcasts. During those two days, speakers from around the country came to share their community stories and urge attendees to not only practice hope, but also to engage in the work necessary to make sure all communities have a voice to assure access to clean water, air, and land. 

Here are a few key quotes from the conference that highlight this message:   “Our environmental and climate justice movement was not birthed in government. It was not funded by federal dollars. It was birthed out of struggle. And it will continue to progress and move forward. We don’t have a reverse on this bus!” ~ Dr. Robert Bullard, the Father of Environmental Justice   “I think part of it is if we can remove the article ‘the’ before we say environment… For communities that I’ve worked with, it’s very intimate… so they call it ‘my air,’ ‘my water,’ ‘my land.’” ~Monique Harden, Former Director of Law and Policy and the Community Engagement Program Manager at the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice   “Instead of playing defence and thinking about how we’re going to not lose more, we ought to be just really boldly looking at what kind of world we want.” ~  Dr. Meghan Kallman, RI State Senator and Associate Professor at UMass Boston’s School for Global Inclusion & Social Development   “Fear is temporary, but regret is forever. So my question to you all is: Are you going to stand up and demand climate action and environmental justice for our generation and the next and those to follow? Or are you going to wait until it’s your life on the line?” ~ Nalleli Cobo, Activist and Storyteller, Peace is Loud, Los Angeles, CA   “We must continue to transform fear into hope, oppression into liberation, injustice into justice, and hatred into love.” ~ Rev. Benjamin Chavis, President and CEO of the National Newspaper   If you’re interested in hearing more of the conference, you can click on the links below to view the conference in full.    Watch Day 1 of the Conference   Watch Day 2 of the Conference