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The Santa Ana City Council votes Tuesday on General Plan Update that would addresses lead contamination and other land use issues that disproportionately affect marginalized communities. A law called SB1000 has been key in helping community advocates lobby city officials to incorporate environmental justice into land use planning in order to reduce health risks.
In the book, Mendez draws from his own experiences as public policy as an advisor, senior legislative consultant, lobbyist and as a gubernatorial appointee during the passage of California’s climate change laws. “California is not just a national leader but a global leader looking at mitigation and adaptation policies around climate change,” Méndez said. “I look at how environmental justice groups in communities of color, who are suffering the worst from climate change with things like air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, are working to address some of the needs.”
AARON ORLOWSKI, HOST
California’s environmental justice advocates have made it clear for years that clever schemes to reduce global carbon emissions can still permit harm to local communities, if polluters are allowed to keep on polluting. Now, with the Sunrise Movement and the Green New Deal, that message is going national.
How has California been at the vanguard of environmental justice? And how can we protect the most vulnerable people when we’re trying to fight climate change?
From the University of California, Irvine, I’m Aaron Orlowski. And you’re listening to the UCI Podcast. Today, I’m speaking with Michael Méndez, an assistant professor of urban planning and public policy at UCI. He’s also the author of the book “Climate Change from the Streets: How Conflict and Collaboration Strengthen the Environmental Justice Movement.”