Month: April 2012

The Coalition Against Environmental Racism, Beyond Toxics, and Centro Latino Americano are pleased to announce the Environmental Justice and Bus Tour event. This event is two parts, described below.

The first event will be an Environmental Justice Panel held on April 12th, 2012 at 7 pm in the Jacqua Center Auditorium. It will consist of three panelists: Caleen Sisk (the tribal leader of the Winnemen Wintu), Luis Olmedo (a community EJ activist from San Diego), and Ben Duncan (Chair of the Governor’s Oregon Environmental Justice Task Force). The panel will give three very different and intriguing perspectives on pollution in vulnerable communities.  This event is free and open to the public.

The second event is the Environmental Justice “Toxic” Bus Tour itself – students will get to experience Environmental Justice activism first hand! Participants will be touring the toxic sites in West Eugene. This event will include students, community members, and city officials. Participants will have the opportunity to see the sites, converse with community members from the area and city officials, and will have the opportunity to attend a community forum where impacted West Eugene residents with talk with city officials how about steps to mitigate the pollution in their community. This will give students an opportunity to see these issues in their community and witness a community bringing about profound political change. Lunch is provided by a local caterer. This event is by registration only. Community members can register by emailing aguzman@beyondtoxics.org and students can register through thisform. Space is limited (50 spots for each group) so register quickly! The cut-off date is April 6th, 2012 at 5 pm.

This Event is Generously Supported by the Student Sustainability Fund, Yamada Language Center, and the Center for the Study of Women and Society.

The Coalition Against Environmental Racism (CAER) is proud to announce its 17^th Annual Grassroots Environmental Justice Conference on Saturday April 7th, 2012. No registration is required. Please join us for a great weekend of free food and free knowledge at the University of Oregon (EMU Fir Room (Keynotes and Artistic Panel)  and River Rooms (all other events))!!

Here is the schedule:

11:00 EJ workshop led by CAER                               River Rooms

12:00 Lunch Keynote: Breeze Harper                Fir Room

1:30 Free Time/Games/Networking                      River Room

2:00 Local Eugene Panel                                        River Room

3:00 NW Dirty Energy Panel                                    River Room

4:00 Food Justice Panel                                          River Room

5:00 Free Time/Games/Networking                    River Room

5:30 Dinner Keynote: Michelle Williams          Fir Room

7:00 EJ Art Workshop: Favianna Rodrguez      Fir Room

Our lunch keynote, Breeze Harper, is an accomplished scholar on issues of black feminisms, critical race theory, and food politics. She has also edited the volume Sistah Vegan: Black Female Vegans Speak about Food, Identity, Health, and Society. This volume, as well her presentation, explores food politics, identity, sexuality, heath, womanism, feminism, decolonization, anti-racism, eco-sustainability, and animal rights through the lens of the black female vegan experience in the USA.

For our dinner keynote, we are hosting Michelle Roberts. She is affiliated with the Advocates for Environmental Human Rights and has provided technical assistance and advocacy support to communities regarding the impacts of toxins on human health and the environment. In addition, she is a spoken word artist who created Arts Slam @SsAMS, a community-based arts program. She has co-authored reports on environmental justice issues and her advocacy work is featured in television, print news, and magazines.

Finally, CAER will be hosting an Environmental Justice artistic workshop as part of the conference with renowned Oakland-based Chicana artist Favianna Rodriquez. Her composites reflect literal and imaginative migration, global community, and interdependence. Her subjects vary, including immigrant day laborers in the US, mothers of disappeared women in Juárez, Mexico, and herself. Through her work we witness the changing US metropolis and new dispora in the arts.