Gerald Torres on Environmental Justice
On this episode of Free Range, Mike Livermore interviews Gerald Torres, a professor at the Yale School of the Environment and Yale Law School and Director of the Yale Center for Environmental Justice. Torres explores the connections between environmental law and social justice from a scholarly and practical perspective. In this episode, Torres discusses the distinction between environmental justice and other social justice claims, the relationship between environmental justice and political polarization, and the procedural process of environmental decision-making.
Episode is an appropriate teaching tool for but not limited to the following topics & courses: environmental politics, clean energy materials, environmental justice, social justice
Discussion Questions
- How does defining the scope of “environmental justice” shape research agendas and policy reform priorities in this domain? What perspectives highlight linkages to adjacent areas like public health?
- What are some key ways environmental justice claims may differ from, while still relating to, broader social justice advocacy? What unique dimensions does an environmental frame offer?
- How was Executive Order 12898 intended to integrate environmental justice into federal agencies’ core responsibilities? Where has progress remained lacking over 30 years?
- What examples showcase national bipartisan cooperation historically around environmental issues? How does current partisan conflict obscure these successes?
- How did environmental justice ideas arise from and empower grassroots community activism? What movements catalyzed greater mainstream adoption?
- How might analyzing the uneven distribution of environmental policy impacts across groups reveal otherwise overlooked regulatory flaws? What examples illustrate this?
- Why does inclusive public participation remain central to environmental justice advocacy? How does this connect to governance legitimacy and accountability?
- What tensions exist between locally-focused environmental reviews and broadly shared climate policy goals? How should trade-offs be managed?
- How do dynamics between environmental organizations and environmental justice groups shape issue framing and reform priorities? Where has progress occurred?
- What environmental justice concerns arise with distributed energy resources like rooftop solar? How should costs and benefits be allocated equitably?
- Why is environmental education and youth climate activism a source of hope? How does this connect to community empowerment strategies?
- What signs of progress in environmental justice advocacy seem most salient despite daunting global challenges? How might these sustain public commitment?
Additional Readings
- FEMA. “Executive Order 12898: Environmental Justice.”
- Gerald Torres, Environmental Burdens and Democratic Justice, 21 Fordham Urb. L.J. 431 (1994).
- Gerald Torres, Environmental Justice: The Legal Meaning of a Social Movement, 15 J.L. & Com. 597 (1995-1996).
- Kurt E. Dongoske, Theresa Pasqual, & Thomas F. King, Environmental Reviews And Case Studies: The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Silencing of Native American Worldviews, Envt’l Practice 17(1) 36-45 (Jan. 4, 2017).
- Deborah MacGregor, Steven Whitaker, & Mahisha Sritharan, Indigenous Environmental Justice and Sustainability, Current Opinion in Envt’l Sustainability Vol. 43, 35-40 (2020).
- Erik Kojola & David N. Pellow, “New Directions In Environmental Justice Studies: Examining the State and Violence,” 30 Environmental Politics (2020).
- Heather E. Ross, Using NEPA in the Fight for Environmental Justice, 18 Wm. & Mary Envtl. L. & Pol’y Rev. 353 (1994).
- James M. McElfish, Jr., “Proposed NEPA Rule Goes All In on Environmental Justice,” Environmental Law Institute (Aug. 28, 2023).
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