California Environmental Justice Coalition to Hold Statewide Conference and Meet with Top State Environmental Officials

Community and statewide leaders representing more than 50 organizations from the California Environmental Justice Coalition (CEJC) will gather in Sacramento to strengthen collective goals and conduct advocacy with agency and elected officials to achieve greater justice and accountability. CEJC is an inclusive grassroots coalition founded in 2014 to unite urban, rural and indigenous communities suffering from pollution and environmental racism.

CEJC’s “2016 Days of Action” will encompass a weekend conference to share information, strategies and best practices for winning toxic cleanup, environmental and cultural preservation, community resilience and other shared CEJC goals, followed by agency and legislative briefings by CEJC community leaders from across the state. Meetings have been scheduled with top officials from Cal/EPA, the Department of Toxic Substances Control, the Air Resources Board and other agencies as well as with key members of the State Legislature.

CEJC member groups work together to develop policies and initiatives and carry out joint campaigns to promote environmental justice for all. CEJC’s campaigns include reforming the California Dept. of Toxic Substances Control and other state agencies to serve the needs of people and the environment instead of protecting the polluters. In Sacramento, CEJC member groups will be able to freely share the numerous pollution and health concerns of EJ communities, build solidarity and formulate a comprehensive plan to present to agencies and elected officials alike in order to address the disparities in environmental health and justice felt by the most exposed and vulnerable people in our state’s urban, rural, and indigenous communities. 

Conference Schedule:

Sunday, August 21 from 9:45-11am: CEJC’s morning conference introductions.

Monday, August 22 from 11am-12:30pm; CEJC’s meeting with Cal/EPA and others.

Members of The California Environmental Justice Coalition:

Asamblea de Poder Popular de Gonzales – Association of Irritated Residents (AIR) – Bay Area Healthy 880 Communities – Biosafety Alliance – Boyle Heights Stakeholders Association – Breakthrough Communities – California Prison Moratorium Project – Central California Environmental Justice Network (CCEJN) – Centro CSO (Community Service Organization) – Citizens for Chiquita Canyon Landfill Compliance – Comite Civico del Valle – Comite Pro Uno – Community Food and Justice Coalition (CFJC) – Community Research and Education in Action for True Empowerment (CREATE) – Community Science Institute – Danza Aztec Tlaltlacah – Desert Protection Society – East Side Coalition Against Exide Toxic Technologies – El Pueblo Para el Aire y Agua Limpia/People for Clean Air & Water of Kettleman City – Environmental Justice Coalition for Water (EJCW) – Food Empowerment Project – Fort Ord Environmental Justice Network – Fresno Brown Berets – Global Community Monitor – Grayson Neighborhood Council – Greenaction for Health and Environmental Justice – Huntersview Mothers and Fathers Committee for Health and Environmental Justice – Idle No More SF Bay Area – Indigenous Permaculture Project – Just Transition Alliance – Kids Protecting Our Planet/Kettleman City – Label GMOs California’s Grassroots – La Cuna de Aztlan Sacred Sites Protection Circle – Latino Outdoors – Luchando por Nuestra Salud – Madera Coalition for Community Justice – Maravilla Historical Society – Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) – Mohave Cultural Preservation Program – Mothers of East Los Angeles – OccupySF Environmental Justice Working Group – Oroville Dioxin Education Committee – Padres Unidos de Maywood (PUMA) – Poder Verde Comite de Wasco – Proyecto Eco Tierra – Rocketdyne Cleanup Coalition – San Joaquin Valley Latino Environmental Advancement Project (LEAP) – Sierra Club Tehipite Chapter/Fresno – Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition – Tri-County Watchdogs – Tri-Valley CAREs (Communities Against Radioactive Environment) – Valley Improvement Projects (VIP) – West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs – West County Toxics Coalition – West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project – Yo Soy Maiz – Youth United for Community Action

To register for the conference, visit the CEJC Web Site