Environmental justice communities are already doing the work needed to make renewable energy industries like offshore wind equitable in their workforce and community benefits, according to Elizabeth Yeampierre, co-chair of the Climate Justice Alliance.
“We have questions; we have solutions; and we have concerns,” Yeampierre said during a panel on environmental justice in the development of the U.S. OSW industry. “Anyone who is coming into the sector needs to be able to support that and not manage our expectations or give us a voice — we have a voice, and we are leading this work nationally.”
Developers should advise environmental justice communities on financing, costs and technical construction work, because “we’re leading this movement,” Yeampierre said, herself a leader from a community on the frontline of climate change in Brooklyn, N.Y. “We are not here to advise you.”
Conversations on how to equitably include environmental justice communities are not just about the disparate impacts of the energy industry on people of color and low-income workers, but a matter of allowing people in these communities to speak for themselves, she added.
“Really, the national initiatives and the state initiatives are being shaped by the work that is being done in vulnerable communities like ours,” Yeampierre said.
“Success for environmental justice communities equals having access to training, workforce development and education in all levels of employment,” she said. “Our communities can’t be boxed into bonuses or only have access to minimum wage or entry-level jobs.”