Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
As our name indicates, we are driven by a passion for justice—for people and for the environment, by a belief that we can accomplish more in genuine partnership with others, and by a commitment to excellence and strategic action.
Our pursuit of diversity and inclusion recognizes that environmental burdens and benefits are not distributed equitably and we seek to address these historic and current disparities so that each of us can realize and enjoy a healthy, rich and inspiring world.
In order to more fully accomplish our mission and live our values, we strive to make our commitment to diversity and inclusion evident in our organizational structure, policies, board of directors, staff, donors, goals, and vision. We welcome people of all backgrounds and seek to foster a culture of respect, openness, learning, integrity, honesty—and a sense of fun.
Our passion for justice calls on us to be inclusive, transparent, and fair in all that we do. Our commitment to working in partnerships compels us to build relationships where all partners are valued, heard, respected, and empowered. Our drive for excellence leads us to learn from a broad range of perspectives and talents. Our desire for savvy and strategic approaches benefits from a multitude of cultural and life experiences and communities.
In short, we believe a commitment to enhance and steadily increase diversity and inclusion at Earthjustice flows directly from our core values and is essential to achieve our mission.
Chrisangel plays in the shadows of a refinery in a neighborhood of Houston, Texas. Polluting facilities are often situated in low-income communities and communities of color, disproportionately impacting the health of residents.
Alongside the Hip Hop Caucus and other partners, Earthjustice works to expand the environmental movement beyond the traditional base of supporters.
Tulalip tribal member Patti Gobin hugs her brother, Glen Gobin, after testifying against plans to build a tar sands oil pipeline that would threaten the Salish Sea and her tribe’s way of life. Earthjustice is representing U.S. tribes in proceedings before the Canadian National Energy Board.
Larry Gibson looks out over the devastated landscape of Kayford Mountain, adjacent to his home and where mountaintop removal coal mining has destroyed much of the celebrated scenery. Earthjustice works in court and on Capitol Hill to end mountaintop removal mining.
Earthjustice is committed to expanding our work and partnerships with communities disproportionately impacted by environmental pollution and climate change. Despite our country’s pledge that all people are equal under the law, communities of color, indigenous communities, and low-income communities have historically and currently shoulder the burden of environmental impacts. Representing these disproportionately impacted communities is a critical priority of our legal, advocacy, and communications efforts.
The stories below illustrate how Earthjustice—in partnership with the very communities that are impacted—uses the power of the law to defend the right of all people to a healthy environment:
With Earthjustice’s help in the courts, the Blackfeet Nation is building a movement to safeguard one of our nation’s wildest and most sacred places in Montana.
When polluters need a place to do their dirtiest and most dangerous work, they tend to locate their operations in places where they believe people have less power. One predominantly African-American community in Albany, New York, is proving them wrong.
After decades of unaddressed discrimination complaints, five communities of color are standing up to the EPA to tackle historical environmental injustices.
Farmworkers and advocates journeyed to Washington to advocate for stronger protections against pesticide exposure. The new worker protections they secured are a powerful testimony to their efforts.
Each year, Earthjustice develops a comprehensive Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Plan to lay out annual internal and external organizational goals. Included in the plan are tangible objectives and metrics for accountability that will keep us committed to our vision.
A report card issued in early 2019 reviewed the progress we made in 2018 towards our goal of becoming a more inclusive and diverse organization that centers equity in all that we do.
The goals reflect the work we believe is essential to do on DEI, both inside and outside the doors of Earthjustice. Inside, we will continue our work to recruit and retain multi-culturally sophisticated employees and to build a stronger culture of inclusion. Outside our doors, we will work to diversify our clients, partners, donors and supporters to ensure that we are serving all communities impacted by environmental issues.
All Staff, Attorneys, Associate Attorneys, and Board represent data for Jan. 1, 2019. New Hires represent data for calendar year 2018. Additional demographic data can be found in the 2018 DEI Report Card.
Earthjustice collects demographic data in accordance with the annual reporting requirements from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The categories of data we collect with respect to gender, race / ethnicity, and job grouping are all determined by the EEOC. We recognize that this data is reflective of only certain aspects of diversity. Earthjustice also tracks and reports this data on an ongoing basis to GuideStar.
