Los Jardines Institute’s Richard Moore
More than ever before, the Biden administration has put environmental justice on the national agenda. In January, President Biden outlined plans for the Justice40 Initiative, which would direct 40 percent of the benefits of a sustainable economy to marginalized communities like mine, in Albuquerque, N.M.
To some, this may sound like a new and radical idea. But in fact, it grew from decades — if not centuries — of struggle. Environmental justice is an idea that connects the wisdom of our ancestors with the dreams of our children.
I got involved in environmental issues a half century ago, almost by accident. I was working as a community organizer in a working-class Chicano neighborhood in Albuquerque.
When we asked people to name their top three or four major issues, they would say that water doesn’t taste very good, or there’s a terrible smell from the sewage plant.
