LAW 5085: Environmental Justice Advocacy
Spring 2024 • Section 21 • CRN 53420

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the history, current trends, and modern application of Environmental Justice (EJ) advocacy in the United States. While there is no definition broad enough to encompass the breadth of environmental justice advocacy (in fact, States have incorporated environmental justice definitions in their policies created by consensus rather than a known definition), we do know that environmental justice advocacy requires respect for the “sacredness of Mother Earth,” its “right to be free from ecological destruction,” and “respect and justice for all peoples, free from bias and discrimination.” In this class, we hope to address how this respect has been neglected; why has such disrespect negatively affected vulnerable, disenfranchised, and marginalized populations; how environmental racism has been used as a tool to disenfranchise Indigenous people, people of color, and people of limited income; and, how advocates can use law, policy, and Environmental Justice principles to target these issues. Students will explore creative EJ advocacy through examining the philosophical foundations and history of the environmental justice movement, foundational concepts such as justice, race, and class, and watching how they play out in a series of case studies on domestic environmental injustice at the local, state, and federal level.

Book List/Materials