Indigenous Leadership in the U.S. Environmental and Climate Justice Movements

Join the Climate Reality Project on August 11 at 11 AM PT (2 PM ET) for a webinar to hear from some incredible leaders on the front lines of the climate justice movement.

RSVP: https://climaterealityproject.org/learn/spotlight-on-indigenous-leadership

From the Lumbee Nation elders instrumental in stopping the Atlantic Coast Pipeline to the Standing Rock Sioux protestors risking everything to block the Dakota Access Pipeline, Indigenous activists have led the fight against fossil fuels and for a truly just transition to clean energy across the US.

For this episode of Spotlight On, we’ll hear from four Indigenous activists who’ve been on the frontlines of this fight and learn from their perspectives on what it means to work for environmental and climate justice.

Webinar Guests:

Donna Chavis, a member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and an activist with over 40 years of service. Her work includes serving as a member of the planning committee of the First National People of Color Leadership Summit in 1991 that developed the principles of environmental justice, working today as senior fossil fuels campaigner with Friends of the Earth US, and fighting the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.

Jorden Revels is a member of the Lumbee Tribe who has been an active environmental justice advocate for his community since he first heard about the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline during his freshman year of college. Today, Jorden works with several local and country-wide organizations, including Friends of the Earth International and Carolina Indian Circle to bring awareness about fossil fuels and other environmental issues.

Beth Roach is chair of the environmental issues committee of the Nottoway Indian Tribal Council in Virginia. She is the co-founder of the Alliance of Native Seedkeepers, which works to keep ancestral seeds alive and to rebuild culture and food security in native communities. She is also chair of the Virginia Council on Environmental Justice and a trained Climate Reality Leader.

Bii Gallardo is from the Apache and Yaqui nations and is 19 years old. They attended the North Hollywood High School Zoo Magnet and is currently attending Pasadena City College where they are president of the Living Culture Intertribal Student Collective and majors in sociology. Bii is a former youth advisor of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health where they worked as an educator in the community. Bii is a Core Team Member for the International Indigenous Youth Council Los Angeles Chapter where they manifest their passions such as climate change, social justice rights, and building relations with the land, into community work.