January 18, 2025 • 12 mins
Happy New Year and welcome to Season 4 of the Environmental Justice Lab. We have a lot of amazing stories and analysis planned for this season. From thinking through the implications of a new president in the United States for EJ work to examining topics like legacy environmental justice to lifting up marginalized voices around the world, we are going to be getting deep this year. Stay with us! Connect with us! And support us!
Connect with our Environmental Justice Lab community:
Instagram: @envjusticelab
YouTube: @envjusticelab
Email: theenvironmentaljusticelab@gmail.com
Support our work by joining the Supporters Club: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-environmental-justice-lab--5583745/support
Don’t forget to subscribe and rate the podcast wherever you listen!
Connect with our Environmental Justice Lab community:
Instagram: @envjusticelab
YouTube: @envjusticelab
Email: theenvironmentaljusticelab@gmail.com
Support our work by joining the Supporters Club: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-environmental-justice-lab--5583745/support
Don’t forget to subscribe and rate the podcast wherever you listen!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Welcome to the Environment with Justice Lab. I am your host,
doctor Leslie Joseph. Thank you so much for joining me
in Happy New Year. It's a new year, everybody. I
haven't had a chance to tell you on the podcast,
but Happy New Year. I hope you made it through
the holiday season. Hope you made it out of twenty
twenty four. Whatever was going on that year, that year
(00:42):
is over and it's a new year. It's a new
season of the podcast. Its season four, very exciting. A
lot's going on, a lot to talk about, a lot
to discuss, and so I cannot wait to get into
it with everyone. This year is going to be another
(01:03):
great season on the podcast. I mean where to begin, right,
So in the United States, at least, you know, in
a few days, we have a new president, a new
president who is not as keen on the idea of
environmental justice as I would like, and I would imagine
(01:23):
that things are going to be different with how the
environments regulated, how the work is funded to fight for
environmental justice, and how people who are dealing with these
issues are going to be able to engage the federal
government on getting them addressed. And so there's going to
be a lot to talk about as it relates to
the ways in which this incoming administration deals with the
(01:47):
environment and environmental justice in particular. You know one thing
I'm curious about. You know, all of those initiatives and
all of those you know, offices and advisory councils and
boards that were stablished to confront environmental justice. Will those
be around? Will they even be in existence anymore? Will
(02:07):
there be a White House Coordinator on environmental justice? I
doubt it, but it's a question, right because all the
executive orders, all of the proclamations, all the different positions
that the previous administration had put in place to allow
for environmental justice work to be done. Like I said
(02:30):
last year, new administration doesn't have to keep any of that.
With a stroke of a pen, that can just undo
it all, take that money back, do something different. So
I'm curious to see what happens with that. What happens
to that infrastructure that the previous administration tried to put
in place to confront environmental justice. Is it going to
(02:51):
still be there in the United States. I have my
doubts about that, but we'll be looking at it. I'm
curious to see what happens I want to know what
the plan is, not just for the administration and the
government and all those people, but what about us, those
of us on the ground, from city to city, state
(03:11):
to states, who applied for these grants and got funded,
who are running these nonprofit organizations with grant funding to
do the hard work of getting things done in our communities.
What are we going to do. What's gonna happen if,
or more likely, when those resources are taken away and reallocated.
(03:33):
What's the plan? We have to have a plan, a
way forward in terms of continuing the fight for environmental justice.
And so we'll be looking at that this year. It's
going to be really really interesting. What else is going on?
So yesterday afternoon I just saw that there was an
agreement between Israel and Hermas to have a cease fire
(03:55):
in Gayza. Great news, that's great news. All you year long,
we've been talking about a ceasefire. We need to end
the war, in the fighting, in the conflict, in the death,
in the destruction, so they can rebuild and figure out
an actual solution to this situation in Israel and in Palestine.
(04:17):
We can't just have non stop fighting and NonStop civilian
death and casualties and malnutrition and famine and disease and
all these things that came along with the war. So
I'm glad that there's an agreement. Obviously it has to
be carried out, hostage releases, prisoner exchanges, humanitarian aid coming in.
(04:40):
We also need to make sure that the people can
go back to their homes, back to where they're from.
How we're going to rebuild, how we're going to rebuild
this thing, because there's a lot, a whole lot that
needs to happen. I wrote an article about this in
The Conversation it's an online magazine for academic and doing
(05:01):
the research on the environmental impact of this war, I
learned a lot of things. For instance, just removing the
debris from the Gaza strip is estimated cost around seven
hundred million dollars. Seven hundred million dollars just to remove
(05:24):
the rubble from the strip. That's a lot of money.
I don't know where it's coming from. It's a lot
of money. The World Bank estimated that the war has
caused and this was back like in June when it
is estimate eighteen point five billion with a b billion
dollars worth of damage has been done because of this
(05:48):
war in the Gadza Strip. Everything you can think of
has been destroyed. Every aspect of life has been destroyed.
I think we're at around forty eight thousand known civilian
casualties from this war. The hostages, a lot of them
died while they were in custody, while they were being
(06:09):
held hostage during this war, and so there are so
many issues that were being discussed last year, and so
I'm glad this new year we have a ceasefire and
some breathing room to think about the next phase of
what it will look like in this occupied territory. So
that happened. What else is going on? Oh? So, if
(06:35):
you don't know, I am a research professor at the
University of South Carolina and so I'm doing research and
so things are being published now. I mentioned that conversation
article earlier. Other more academic research is being published, and
so I'll be giving you updates on that what I'm learning,
what I'm seeing, what's happening, and what I'm reporting on
(06:57):
in terms of the research. Aspects of things we'll be
discussed on the podcast as well. So you'll get publication
alerts where I'll just send you or at least direct
you to a recent article that I've written or that
I've co authored that really dives into an environmental justice issue.
We'll talk about it. We'll cite some of the statistics,
(07:19):
some of the day that I've gathered that we've gathered,
and we'll talk about it right on the podcast. This year,
it's going to be a big year. It's going to
be a big year. New guests are coming to the
podcast right so, I'm already recording episodes with a student
at Ohio Wesleyan University. Her name is Savannah. She's talking
(07:40):
about legacy environmental justice. We're going to talk about what
she's talking about, how it looks in her hometown, and
what happens next with what's going on there. Very exciting stuff.
I got a phone call, well, I got an email.
Then we had a phone call with the executive director
of the Coastal Carolina River Watch organization. They are working
(08:06):
with communities in the coast of North Carolina to address
their environmental justice concerns and there's tons of them. Issues
with food, issues with pollution, issues with sea level rise,
climate change, all of these things are not being addressed
in these communities, which are primarily black, African American communities,
(08:27):
and so we're going to talk about it. We're going
to discuss it. Hopefully I get a chance to go
up and do some real research and understand it and
contribute in some meaningful way to helping these communities deal
with these issues, because there are lots of issues. So
we're going to talk about it this year on the podcast.
And of course, you know, there's going to always be
(08:50):
some type of issue that comes up because it happens
every year. Some oil spill, some accidental discs charge, some
court case that diminishes the ability of people to regulate
contamination in the environment. So many different things that keep happening.
(09:13):
We're going to just keep track of them. We're going
to keep up with them because it's important to know.
And this year I'm gonna do better. This year, I'm
gonna do better thinking more globally about this issue of
environmental justice. I know I get stuck in my US
policy political discourse and it's important, but there's stuff happening
(09:35):
around the world that we need to be aware of.
In the Middle East, in Syria and Lebanon and Yemen,
Saudi Arabia, we have to talk about Africa, West Africa,
South Africa, North Africa. We have to talk about these places,
different parts of Asia, even out in Australia. We need
to broaden our view of environment, at least I do.
(09:56):
Maybe you already had that broad view, and if so,
please share, because I need to get a bigger view
of this movement and what the fight looks like in
different parts of the world, because it's very different, different communities,
different concerns, different issues. Everything is different when you look
outside of your own country, and so I want to
(10:17):
be able to do that and spend some time on
that as well. So if you're listening, you got some ideas,
please send them my way. I would love to hear them.
If you're from a particular country, a particular part of
the world that doesn't get the coverage it needs, it
doesn't have the reach that you would like it to have, Hey,
send me an email, send me a message. We can
(10:37):
talk about it. I would love to talk about it.
And so we're going to be doing that all this year,
and so I'm very excited about it. So I hope
that you're excited about the new year, because I know
I am. I know different people have different views of
what the year could look like. But what we're going
to do on a podcast is make sure that we
(10:58):
talk about these issues. We lift up the marginalized voices
and the marginalized communities, and we continue to push people
towards a view of the world that has justice at
the center of it, that has justice as the guiding
principle for how things are done and how decisions are made,
(11:18):
and how we operate in these different societies. We need
to keep justice front and center, and on the podcast,
we're all about environmental justice. So please stay tuned. It's
going to be a great year. Happy New Year to
all of you, and we're going to have a lot
of fun this year. So enjoy the podcast, continue to subscribe,
(11:40):
and continue to share it with your friends. Anybody think
is interested, continue to reach out to me. I will respond,
I promise you I will, And we got a lot
in the store, So stay tuned. This is the Environmental
Justice Lab where we are for the people and for
the planets. So
Welcome to the Environment with Justice Lab. I am your host,
doctor Leslie Joseph. Thank you so much for joining me
in Happy New Year. It's a new year, everybody. I
haven't had a chance to tell you on the podcast,
but Happy New Year. I hope you made it through
the holiday season. Hope you made it out of twenty
twenty four. Whatever was going on that year, that year
(00:42):
is over and it's a new year. It's a new
season of the podcast. Its season four, very exciting. A
lot's going on, a lot to talk about, a lot
to discuss, and so I cannot wait to get into
it with everyone. This year is going to be another
(01:03):
great season on the podcast. I mean where to begin, right,
So in the United States, at least, you know, in
a few days, we have a new president, a new
president who is not as keen on the idea of
environmental justice as I would like, and I would imagine
(01:23):
that things are going to be different with how the
environments regulated, how the work is funded to fight for
environmental justice, and how people who are dealing with these
issues are going to be able to engage the federal
government on getting them addressed. And so there's going to
be a lot to talk about as it relates to
the ways in which this incoming administration deals with the
(01:47):
environment and environmental justice in particular. You know one thing
I'm curious about. You know, all of those initiatives and
all of those you know, offices and advisory councils and
boards that were stablished to confront environmental justice. Will those
be around? Will they even be in existence anymore? Will
(02:07):
there be a White House Coordinator on environmental justice? I
doubt it, but it's a question, right because all the
executive orders, all of the proclamations, all the different positions
that the previous administration had put in place to allow
for environmental justice work to be done. Like I said
(02:30):
last year, new administration doesn't have to keep any of that.
With a stroke of a pen, that can just undo
it all, take that money back, do something different. So
I'm curious to see what happens with that. What happens
to that infrastructure that the previous administration tried to put
in place to confront environmental justice. Is it going to
(02:51):
still be there in the United States. I have my
doubts about that, but we'll be looking at it. I'm
curious to see what happens I want to know what
the plan is, not just for the administration and the
government and all those people, but what about us, those
of us on the ground, from city to city, state
(03:11):
to states, who applied for these grants and got funded,
who are running these nonprofit organizations with grant funding to
do the hard work of getting things done in our communities.
What are we going to do. What's gonna happen if,
or more likely, when those resources are taken away and reallocated.
(03:33):
What's the plan? We have to have a plan, a
way forward in terms of continuing the fight for environmental justice.
And so we'll be looking at that this year. It's
going to be really really interesting. What else is going on?
So yesterday afternoon I just saw that there was an
agreement between Israel and Hermas to have a cease fire
(03:55):
in Gayza. Great news, that's great news. All you year long,
we've been talking about a ceasefire. We need to end
the war, in the fighting, in the conflict, in the death,
in the destruction, so they can rebuild and figure out
an actual solution to this situation in Israel and in Palestine.
(04:17):
We can't just have non stop fighting and NonStop civilian
death and casualties and malnutrition and famine and disease and
all these things that came along with the war. So
I'm glad that there's an agreement. Obviously it has to
be carried out, hostage releases, prisoner exchanges, humanitarian aid coming in.
(04:40):
We also need to make sure that the people can
go back to their homes, back to where they're from.
How we're going to rebuild, how we're going to rebuild
this thing, because there's a lot, a whole lot that
needs to happen. I wrote an article about this in
The Conversation it's an online magazine for academic and doing
(05:01):
the research on the environmental impact of this war, I
learned a lot of things. For instance, just removing the
debris from the Gaza strip is estimated cost around seven
hundred million dollars. Seven hundred million dollars just to remove
(05:24):
the rubble from the strip. That's a lot of money.
I don't know where it's coming from. It's a lot
of money. The World Bank estimated that the war has
caused and this was back like in June when it
is estimate eighteen point five billion with a b billion
dollars worth of damage has been done because of this
(05:48):
war in the Gadza Strip. Everything you can think of
has been destroyed. Every aspect of life has been destroyed.
I think we're at around forty eight thousand known civilian
casualties from this war. The hostages, a lot of them
died while they were in custody, while they were being
(06:09):
held hostage during this war, and so there are so
many issues that were being discussed last year, and so
I'm glad this new year we have a ceasefire and
some breathing room to think about the next phase of
what it will look like in this occupied territory. So
that happened. What else is going on? Oh? So, if
(06:35):
you don't know, I am a research professor at the
University of South Carolina and so I'm doing research and
so things are being published now. I mentioned that conversation
article earlier. Other more academic research is being published, and
so I'll be giving you updates on that what I'm learning,
what I'm seeing, what's happening, and what I'm reporting on
(06:57):
in terms of the research. Aspects of things we'll be
discussed on the podcast as well. So you'll get publication
alerts where I'll just send you or at least direct
you to a recent article that I've written or that
I've co authored that really dives into an environmental justice issue.
We'll talk about it. We'll cite some of the statistics,
(07:19):
some of the day that I've gathered that we've gathered,
and we'll talk about it right on the podcast. This year,
it's going to be a big year. It's going to
be a big year. New guests are coming to the
podcast right so, I'm already recording episodes with a student
at Ohio Wesleyan University. Her name is Savannah. She's talking
(07:40):
about legacy environmental justice. We're going to talk about what
she's talking about, how it looks in her hometown, and
what happens next with what's going on there. Very exciting stuff.
I got a phone call, well, I got an email.
Then we had a phone call with the executive director
of the Coastal Carolina River Watch organization. They are working
(08:06):
with communities in the coast of North Carolina to address
their environmental justice concerns and there's tons of them. Issues
with food, issues with pollution, issues with sea level rise,
climate change, all of these things are not being addressed
in these communities, which are primarily black, African American communities,
(08:27):
and so we're going to talk about it. We're going
to discuss it. Hopefully I get a chance to go
up and do some real research and understand it and
contribute in some meaningful way to helping these communities deal
with these issues, because there are lots of issues. So
we're going to talk about it this year on the podcast.
And of course, you know, there's going to always be
(08:50):
some type of issue that comes up because it happens
every year. Some oil spill, some accidental discs charge, some
court case that diminishes the ability of people to regulate
contamination in the environment. So many different things that keep happening.
(09:13):
We're going to just keep track of them. We're going
to keep up with them because it's important to know.
And this year I'm gonna do better. This year, I'm
gonna do better thinking more globally about this issue of
environmental justice. I know I get stuck in my US
policy political discourse and it's important, but there's stuff happening
(09:35):
around the world that we need to be aware of.
In the Middle East, in Syria and Lebanon and Yemen,
Saudi Arabia, we have to talk about Africa, West Africa,
South Africa, North Africa. We have to talk about these places,
different parts of Asia, even out in Australia. We need
to broaden our view of environment, at least I do.
(09:56):
Maybe you already had that broad view, and if so,
please share, because I need to get a bigger view
of this movement and what the fight looks like in
different parts of the world, because it's very different, different communities,
different concerns, different issues. Everything is different when you look
outside of your own country, and so I want to
(10:17):
be able to do that and spend some time on
that as well. So if you're listening, you got some ideas,
please send them my way. I would love to hear them.
If you're from a particular country, a particular part of
the world that doesn't get the coverage it needs, it
doesn't have the reach that you would like it to have, Hey,
send me an email, send me a message. We can
(10:37):
talk about it. I would love to talk about it.
And so we're going to be doing that all this year,
and so I'm very excited about it. So I hope
that you're excited about the new year, because I know
I am. I know different people have different views of
what the year could look like. But what we're going
to do on a podcast is make sure that we
(10:58):
talk about these issues. We lift up the marginalized voices
and the marginalized communities, and we continue to push people
towards a view of the world that has justice at
the center of it, that has justice as the guiding
principle for how things are done and how decisions are made,
(11:18):
and how we operate in these different societies. We need
to keep justice front and center, and on the podcast,
we're all about environmental justice. So please stay tuned. It's
going to be a great year. Happy New Year to
all of you, and we're going to have a lot
of fun this year. So enjoy the podcast, continue to subscribe,
(11:40):
and continue to share it with your friends. Anybody think
is interested, continue to reach out to me. I will respond,
I promise you I will, And we got a lot
in the store, So stay tuned. This is the Environmental
Justice Lab where we are for the people and for
the planets. So
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.