The Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe in California installed its own small-scale electrical supply grid using solar panels and Tesla batteries to make their community more resilient to energy disruptions and lower carbon dioxide emissions. This proved useful during the 2019 wildfire season when utility companies shut down power for millions of residents. The tribe is now helping other Native reserves to build their own microgrid systems.

Researchers, policy makers and activists have joined together to embed within a community in Brooklyn in order to encourage local control over climate change problems and solutions. From playing jeopardy, which combines local environmental science with history trivia, to holding listening sessions, the goal is to encourage collaboration towards solutions within the community.

In many low-income neighborhoods, new green infrastructure elements and green spaces signal the beginnings of gentrification. A coalition in one of the most ethnically diverse neighborhoods in Portland, Oregon is drawing on grassroots leadership, leadership development and job training programs, and culturally-specific green infrastructure construction to fight displacement and ensure that the current residents can benefit from the sustainability and livability improvements they make to their neighborhood.

Armed with data, local activists are taking on environmental justice campaigns. In the absence of action on the part of the Federal Government, local organizations in Mississippi and across the South are working to increase transparency, generate data on public health issues, and mobilize action on climate change.

Studies have shown that U.S. Latinos are one of the mostly highly invested groups in helping fight against climate change, yet are also often left out of the conversation. Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability as well as other local agencies are making an effort to bridge that gap and engage Latinos through better targeted environmental outreach efforts.

Across the word, specialized environmental courts are being created to make sure the environment receives justice and protection against human destruction and exploitation. In the face of climate change, 44 countries across six continents have developed such courts, driven by a collective understanding of the intersection of human rights and the environment. While a seemingly major step toward justice, the new courts are hard to evaluate and have faced criticisms like bias and their impact in the larger context of climate change.

For environmental groups like Conservation Colorado looking to expand their reach, they’ve learned that they need to rebuild relationships and trust with communities that have historically been excluded from conservation conversations and take the time to understand the issues directly impacting them. Once they’ve taken those steps, Conservation Colorado was able to work with an all-women’s Latina group to prevent a waste treatment plant from expanding into their community.

Rev. Lennox Yearwood, founder of the Hip Hop Caucus, is using music and comedy to highlight the intersection of climate change and racial justice. His group released a music video talking about the Flint water crisis and they produced a stand-up comedy special about climate change. By using the power of storytelling, he believes he’s able to bring young people and their stories into the climate movement.