WClimate experts spoke with actress and environmental activist Shailene Woodley at the TIME100 Summit on Wednesday about how to ensure America not only moves toward a clean energy future, but that it happens in an equitable way.
Communities that live near facilities that significantly pollute the air often suffer disproportionately high health care costs, while jobs tend to be sourced by more distant neighborhoods, says Robert D. Bullard, professor and director of the Bullard Center for Environmental and Climate Policy. from Texas Southern University. This same disparity should not occur with the transition to clean energy, he notes. “There is no economic revival along the fence in Louisiana’s cancer alley or Houston’s chemical district,” says Bullard. “These communities that have historically been left out, their voices have not been present when policy decisions are made.”
A 2023 State of the Air Report American Lung Association found that people of color make up 41% of the U.S. population, but are 54% of the nearly 120 million who live in counties with at least one failing grade. “In counties with the worst air quality that score low on all three pollution measures, 72% of the 18 million affected residents are people of color, compared to 28% who are white,” the report notes.
However, there are some victories. The Inflation Reduction Act, historic environmental legislation passed by Congress in 2022, nullified $60 billion for environmental justice. “There’s money for it and more people in the room to decide what we need to do to transition properly,” says Bullard.
Christiana Figueres, co-host of the Outrage+Optimism Podcast who worked as a diplomat on climate change issues at the United Nations, emphasizes that the international community must also invest in an equitable transition to clean energy. Figueres points to heat waves in large areas of Africa in recent weeks. “What recourse do these people have?” she asks. “(Women) are cultivating land that is increasingly arid, drier and less fertile… We still don’t have support for the people who didn’t cause climate change… that to me is one of the main injustices.”
Woodley is an actor and environmental activist. She worked with Greenpeace – and took part in a year-long expedition in Hope ship in 2019 to research the impact of plastics and microplastics on marine life – and advocate for climate solutions.
The TIME100 Summit brings together leaders from the global TIME100 community to highlight solutions and encourage action toward a better world. This year’s summit features a variety of speakers from diverse sectors, including politics, business, health and science, culture and more.
2024 TIME 100 Summit speakers include actor Elliot Page, designer Tory Burch, Olympic medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad, WNBA champion A’ja Wilson, author Margaret Atwood, NYSE President Lynn Martin, comedian Alex Edelman , Professor Yoshua Bengio, 68th Secretary of State John Kerry, actress Jane Fonda and many more.
The TIME100 Summit was presented by Booking.com, Citi, Merck, Northern Data Group, Glenfiddich Single Malt Scotch Whiskey and Verizon.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
