Building Trust and Taking Action: Local Climate Justice Initiatives in Legacy Cities (Webinar)

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As the effects of climate change intensify, communities of color will continue to suffer the most from excessive urban heat, flooding, displacement, poor water and air quality, and other environmental and economic harms. In response, mid-sized, formerly industrial legacy cities such as Providence, Rhode Island; Richmond, Virginia; and Cincinnati, Ohio, have recently adopted climate equity plans.

City officials developed these plans in close collaboration with residents, community-based organizations, and climate experts. The plans outline strategies and interventions to mitigate the risks and disparate impacts that climate change will have on Black, brown, and indigenous families in their most vulnerable neighborhoods.

In this webinar, Leah Bamberger, executive director of the Northeastern University Climate Justice and Sustainability Hub and former director of sustainability for the city of Providence, will share lessons learned in Providence, as well as context for current environmental justice efforts at the local government level. City of Providence Sustainability Director Emily Koo and Climate Justice Policy Associate Elder Gonzalez Trejo will talk about the city’s Racial and Environmental Justice Committee and its Climate Justice Plan, the link between planning and public health, and how municipal actors can promote climate justice through stronger community engagement. Panelists will also consider how to ensure that local governments’ sustainability priorities respond directly to the needs of diverse communities.

Cosponsored by the Future of Small Cities Institute, this webinar is the final installment in the Greening America’s Small Cities series.