Towards Environmental Justice

What is Environmental Justice?

Environmental Justice (EJ) is based on the principle that individuals and communities around the globe are disadvantaged (both socially and environmentally) by the actions of organisations with more power than them. The EJ movement aims to strengthen the voices of individuals, employees and communities and redress this balance.

I am a member of a local community group and have experienced this first hand in my village community of Milford in Derbyshire over the last couple of years. Milford is set in a stunning natural landscape and part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage site. We are being faced by several large housing developments which will have a detrimental effect on the quality of our lives and our environment. The developments to date have been pushed through through with very little consultation with us.

Why this Blog?

I have just started a HE course in Environmental Justice, through Friends of the Earth and Queen Margaret College, Edinburgh. This has been part-funded by the Derbyshire Community Fund. I set up this Blog because I want to pass on the results of what I will learn over the next 18 months to other individuals and to the wider community.

What's in the Blog?

This Blog will set out all I am learning through my course in the form of "Guides at a glance" which will cover key EJ topics in a concise and practical way - with a bit of humour thrown in for good measure ;-)

Each guide will set out set out a brief summary of the topic, a step by step list of how to go about doing something, any areas to be careful of and will refer you to useful sources of help and information. Topics are likely to include:

How to object to a planning application
How to hold a public/ community meeting
How to organise community consultation
How to carry out a sustainability audit
How to make the best of the media
How to organise an effective campaign
How to start a social enterprise

Please note that these guides will initially be based on my learning alone, and any feedback in terms of Blog comment will be most useful!

I hope you find my Blog useful and even enjoyable! and if I can quote from the title of an Alice Walker book I am currently reading ..."We are the ones we have been waiting for... "