Thank you for joining us in commemorating the New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance's 20th year of advocating for EJ communities!
📍Location
All panels, roundtables, and speaker events will be held at the Conference Center at Mercer.
The September 16th 20th Anniversary Celebration will take place at the Crowne Plaza Princeton from 6-9 pm, along with a cocktail hour from 5-6 pm.
Check-in will be held each day at the Conference Center from 10-11 am.
Please fill out the following waivers (required for all in-person attendees):
Review our Covid-19 protocols here.
🚘 Parking
The Conference Center at Mercer
There is a designated, free lot located directly outside of the Conference Center. Enter through Old Trenton Road and follow the signs for Conference Center parking. If no spaces are available, additional parking can be found in the larger West Student Lot further down.
Crowne Plaza Princeton
For those staying at the hotel, there is a reserved lot directly outside. For all others, there is free parking located nearby at 870 Scudders Mill Road.
Panel Information: Click to Expand
September 15, 12:20-1:45 pm
Location: 104 Hutchinson (Auditorium)
For over a decade Dr. Nicky Sheats, Esq., and his colleagues in New Jersey and around the nation have been advocating that, in addition to fighting climate change, climate change mitigation policy should be utilized to reduce disproportionate pollution loads in Of Color communities and communities with low-income communities, i.e., in environmental justice (EJ) communities. This goal could be achieved by mandating that power plants reduce their air pollution emissions if they significantly impact EJ communities. This insistence has led most organizations in the EJ community to reject what is perhaps the dominant climate change mitigation policy in use today, carbon trading, since it does not guarantee emissions reductions in the communities with the most pollution. Attend the New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance’s 20th-year anniversary celebration and hear Dr. Sheats provide more detail on climate change mitigation policy from an EJ perspective, and where the New Jersey EJ community wants to take this policy.
Speaker: Dr. Nicky Sheats, Esq., Board Chair, NJEJA & Director, Center for the Urban Environment at Kean University, Union, NJ
September 15, 2:45-4:15 pm
Location: 104 Hutchinson (Auditorium)
Since the start of the Biden administration, Environmental Justice has been front and center in Federal environmental policy. Justice 40, the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, EPA funding, the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, and other initiatives have the potential to change the economic, social, and environmental conditions in EJ communities – but will they? Hear from local and regional EJ leaders working in national spaces to ensure equity and accountability in the implementation of federal policy.
Panelists:
- Basav Sen, Climate Policy Project Director, Institute for Policy Studies, Washington, DC
- Dr. Nicky Sheats, Esq., Board Chair, NJEJA & Director, Center for the Urban Environment at Kean University, Union, NJ
- Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright, Director of Environmental Justice, NY Lawyers for the Public Interest, NYC
- Ansha Zaman, Federal Policy Director, Center for Earth Energy and Democracy, Minneapolis, MN
- Moderated by Maria Lopez-Nuñez, Deputy Director, Ironbound Community Corporation, Newark, NJ
September 16, 12:10-1:15 pm
Location: 125 Livingston
Environmental Justice Communities are not created by accident or in isolation. They are the result of present and historical policies and practices related to land use. Contemporary issues like warehousing fall squarely within this debate. EJ Leaders from across the region will illuminate the racist and discriminatory roots of the proliferation of toxic industry in their communities and the changes in regulatory and legal frameworks that are necessary for the transition to cleaner, greener land-uses that avoid displacement and make communities whole.
Panelists:
- Daniel Chu, Energy Planner, NYC-EJA, NYC
- Anastasia Gordon, Energy and Transportation Policy Manager, We Act, Harlem, NYC
- Kim Thompson-Gaddy, National Environmental Justice Director, Clean Water Action & Founder and Director, South Ward Environmental Alliance, Newark, NJ
- Amy Goldsmith, New Jersey State Director, Clean Water Action, NJ
- Moderated by Dr. Ana Baptista, Associate Director, Tishman Environment and Design Center, New School, NYC
September 16, 3:20-4:20 pm
Location: 125 Livingston
The 2020 Environmental Justice Law was a victory for New Jersey and EJ communities everywhere. It was one of many laws enacted over the last few years in different states for the purpose of protecting overburdened communities. Hear about some of those powerful pieces of legislation and how EJ leaders’ efforts have led to more protective laws and enforcement.
Panelists:
- Sofía Owen, Environmental Justice Legal Services Director, Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE), Roxbury, MA
- Maria Lopez-Nuñez, Deputy Director, Ironbound Community Corporation, Newark, NJ
- Dr. Ana Baptista, Associate Director, Tishman Environment and Design Center, New School, NYC
- Renae Reynolds, Executive Director, Tri-State Transportation Campaign
- Moderated by Dr. Nicky Sheats, Esq., Board Chair, NJEJA & Director, Center for the Urban Environment at Kean University, Union, NJ
Zoom links can also be found here.
Space Agreements
- Respect and hear out each other’s experiences.
- Be sure to speak with I statements:
- e.g.: “I believe that everyone deserves clean air where they live”
- If you feel as though you may be speaking a lot, make sure you share the space.
- If you believe you’re not speaking as much as you’d like, feel free to take up the space.
- Embrace curiosity for the unknown.
- Lean into discomfort and get comfy.
- Be kind to yourself
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© 2021 New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance.