Indigenous people used prescribed burns in forests for thousands of years to manage land, reduce wildfire risk, and support cultural practices. Noa Ervin and Claire McLeod of Beveridge & Diamond interview Deniss Martinez, PhD Candidate at the University of California Davis, focusing on how colonial governments and land management agencies have suppressed these practices, and highlight the recent progress in restoring Indigenous fire management. ★ Support this podcast ★

Wetlands are critical infrastructure for coastal areas and species, but they are also integral to the culture of local communities. This week’s episode features Louisiana 4-H’s Wetlands Youth Ambassadors, young leaders working to protect and restore the state’s wetlands. The ambassadors share their personal experiences growing up near and in coastal wetlands, discuss the challenges and opportunities facing Louisiana's wetlands, and their work to raise awareness about the importance of wetlands.  ★ Support this podcast ★

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is playing a major role in setting air quality standards across the country and world. Led by Dr. Steven Cliff, the agency works closely with scientists, industry, and other regulatory bodies to create a carbon-neutral California by 2045. In this episode, Dr. Cliff joins Justin Savage and Maureen Gorsen of Sidley Austin LLP to discuss how CARB’s work is considering environmental justice, rethinking and electrifying their transportation infrastructure, and automated driving. ★ Support this podcast ★

In this podcast episode, Jeffrey Peterson interviews Susan Crawford and Robert Verchick, two noted lawyers who have new books on climate adaptation and coastal resilience published in April 2023. The interview covers a wide range of topics, including the challenges posed by sea-level rise, the importance of social justice in climate adaptation, and the role of law in addressing climate change.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Drinking water in the United States is among the world’s cleanest and most heavily regulated, yet entire grocery store aisles are dedicated to bottled water. Why is this? In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray speaks with Cindy Donis, a community organizer for East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, and Gregory Pierce, director of the Human Right to Water Solutions Lab within UCLA’s Luskin Center for Innovation. Cindy and Gregory offer background on drinking water contamination in LA County, California, and share what needs to happen at the local, state, and federal level to combat negative perceptions about tap water while ensuring it is indeed safe to drink. ★ Support this podcast ★

As sovereign nations, a unique relationship exists between Tribal Nations and the U.S. federal government, which is grounded in the U.S. Constitution. An integral component of this relationship is a process known as “government-to-government consultation,” or, colloquially, a “G2G.” In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray speaks with Meghan Gavin, a lawyer and partner at Cascadia Law Group, to learn about G2G consultation with Tribes in Washington state, the power dynamic surrounding government relations with Tribal Nations, and how changing environmental conditions impact future consultations. She will also weigh in on how the Biden-Harris Administration’s new policies on consultation impact her work. The episode is part of The Youth Review podcast series.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Increasingly, independent third parties—better known as “corporate compliance monitors”--are appointed to oversee a company’s compliance following the settlement of a criminal or, sometimes, civil enforcement case. Justin Savage of Sidley Austin LLP, speaks with Ike Adams, a Partner at Sidley Austin, and Michele Edwards and Brad Wilson, both with StoneTurn, a global advisory firm. The trio discuss corporate compliance monitorships, which has been a perennial hot topic in DOJ enforcement, particularly in the environmental space over the last 5 years. The episode is part of The Enforcement Angle series, featuring conversations about state and federal enforcement of environmental laws and regulations with senior enforcement officials and thought leaders on environmental enforcement in the United States and globally.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Global sustainable development requires attention to environmental, developmental, and social priorities. ELI’s Georgia Ray speaks with ELI Visiting Attorney Tomkeen Mobegi, an international law expert whose past work has focused on climate change, environmental governance, and human rights and development in the Global South. Tomkeen shares his perspective on intersectional and international legal education, the importance of international treaties, and the unique approach of the United States in the international legal space.  ★ Support this podcast ★

International Women’s Day is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 to bring attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against women. One women’s issue that is often overlooked is access to clean water. In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray speaks with Elizabeth Koch, ELI’s Senior Manager of International Programs, and Jessica Troell, Director of ELI’s International Water Program, about two ELI initiatives pertaining to women and water: strengthening the recognition and protection of water tenure of the world’s most vulnerable populations; and the importance of inclusive decisionmaking in water diplomacy processes and the resultant positive implications for regional peace and human security. ★ Support this podcast ★

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Environment & Natural Resources Division is tasked with enforcing the United States’ civil and criminal environmental laws. In this episode, Justin Savage and Nicole Noelliste of Sidley Austin LLP talk with Todd Kim, the Assistant Attorney General of the DOJ ENRD, and Kate Konschnik, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General of ENRD. The episode is part of The Enforcement Angle series, featuring conversations about state and federal enforcement of environmental laws and regulations with senior enforcement officials and thought leaders on environmental enforcement in the United States and globally.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Many view the early 1970s as the dawn of environmental law here in the United States. President Nixon signed NEPA into law on January 1, 1970. By December of that same year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was formed. Across the Atlantic, France was similarly focused on the environment, and created the Ministry of the Environment in 1971. Was this pure serendipity or were there cultural and historical factors at play that contributed to that almost concurrent establishment?  And what other parallels existed between France and the United States in their environmental regulatory journeys? In this episode, ELI Visiting Attorney Aïcha Ghmouch discusses her work examining these two frameworks. ★ Support this podcast ★

With its deeply forested mountains, unique rock formations, vast plains, and moonlike deserts, New Mexico—the fifth largest state of the nation—boasts a unique landscape. Tasked with protecting and restoring the environment while fostering a healthy and prosperous New Mexico for present and future generations, the New Mexico Environment Department covers a lot of ground. In this episode, Justin Savage, a Partner and the Global Co-Leader of the Environmental practice at Sidley Austin LLP, speaks with New Mexico Environment Secretary James Kenney and the former Director of EPA's Criminal Investigation Division, Doug Parker. ★ Support this podcast ★

February 2 is World Wetlands Day! Wetlands are critically important ecosystems contributing to biodiversity, climate mitigation and adaptation, freshwater availability, and world economies. Sadly, nearly 90% of the world’s wetlands have been degraded since the 1700s, and we are losing wetlands three times faster than forests. Urgent action is therefore needed to reverse wetland loss and protect existing wetlands. In this episode, we speak with Ross Weaver, the Program Assistant Director for Wetlands Watch. This podcast is the first in a series of episodes dedicated to highlighting the incredible work done by wetland heroes throughout the country. Some of the project discussed in this podcast include the Community Rating System Workgroup, the Design Collaboratory, the Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional Program, and the Fight the Flood Program.  ★ Support this podcast ★

The Environmental Law Institute has been making law work for people, places, and the planet for more than 50 years. And the year 2022 was no different. In this episode, John Pendergrass, ELI’s Vice President of Programs and Publications, and Sandy Thiam, Associate Vice President of Research & Policy and head of the Judicial Education Program, share highlights from our research department in 2022. Jay and Sandy also offer a preview of what’s in store for 2023.  Tune into other podcasts mentioned in this episode: Artificial Intelligence, State Protection of Nonfederal Waters, ELI’s Pro Bono Clearinghouse, and the National Wetlands Awards.  ★ Support this podcast ★

As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts future warming, climate scientists play a crucial role in understanding what ecosystem functions and services are impacted by climate change. Without effective climate science communication, coordination and collaboration among federal agencies, NGOs, scientists, and legislators, environmental policymaking processes will be incredibly difficult. In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray speaks with ELI Science Fellow John Doherty about his paleoclimatology research, current climate change policy discussions, and barriers associated with making climate science education accessible.  ★ Support this podcast ★

The significant environmental and human health benefits that are linked to electrifying transportation cannot be downplayed. Electric vehicles (EVs) do not produce tailpipe emissions, and, when charged using electricity generated from renewable sources like solar and wind, result in no operational upstream emissions either. But as more EVs reach the roads, governments will need to address a host of new environmental and social challenges. In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray and Jack Lyman, a partner at Marten Law LLP, reflect on the role EV production and use plays within a just energy transition. The episode is part of The Youth Review podcast series.  Interested in learning more? Check out these articles and posts on EV emissions, EV battery production, EV charging networks, and environmental justice.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Once the subject of science fiction, artificial Intelligence (AI) is here to stay. From self-driving cars to “smart” appliances to movie recommendations from your favorite streaming service, AI pervades so many aspects of modern daily life. And while the conveniences AI offers are not without their environmental costs, it can hold great promise for protecting the planet. In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray speaks with Jed Anderson, the founder of EnviroAI, to discuss the role of AI in environmental compliance. Jed shares how we can leverage the sophisticated pattern-recognition capabilities implicit in AI technology to better monitor emissions and takes Georgia on a virtual tour of a Texas oil refinery.  ★ Support this podcast ★

The renewable fuel standard program seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, grow the United States’ renewable fuels sector, and lessen our reliance on imported oil. At its most basic, the program requires a certain volume of renewable fuel to replace or reduce petroleum-based transportation fuel, heating oil, or jet fuel. Yet, the program fails to confer benefits to all Americans, and in some respects, it may even disproportionally burden disenfranchised communities. How can we leverage renewable energy standards to better aid vulnerable communities so that energy systems advance rather than thwart environmental justice? In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray talks to two people who have been following the issue closely: Carlos Garcia, a Federal Policy Manager at Bloom Energy, and Joel Porter, a Policy Manager for CleanAIRE NC.  Interested in learning more? Contact Carlos Garcia via email; check out Bloom Energy’s webpage on biogas and its resources on energy sources for animal agriculture; and/or read about the issues Joel Porter describes in these articles on: wood pellets, marginalized communities in the American South, biogas and methane leaks, hog farms, and manure wastewater. Also check out Joel’s blog on the cost of livestock factory farming in North Carolina.  ★ Support this podcast ★

INTERPOL’s Pollution Crime Working Group, a global network of national experts, initiates and leads a number of projects to combat the transport, trading, and disposal of hazardous wastes or resources in contravention of national and international laws. Justin Savage, a Partner and the Global Co-Leader of the Environmental practice at Sidley Austin LLP, and Nicole Noelliste, a Managing Associate at Sidley Austin LLP, talk to two members serving on INTERPOL’s Pollution Crime Working Group: Joseph Poux and Anne Brosnan. Also available on video! ★ Support this podcast ★

Since 1984, the faces and voices of ELI’s constituents have come together in a gathering of environmental professionals at the annual ELI Environmental Achievement Award. In this episode, ELI’s Georgia Ray sits down with the recipient of this year’s Environmental Achievement Award: Benjamin F. Wilson, an environmental lawyer and civil rights advocate who has worked tirelessly to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within the legal field.  ★ Support this podcast ★

What happens when federal regulatory changes to the CWA framework result in regulatory “gaps” for the states to resolve? Jim McElfish, a Senior Attorney and Director of ELI’s Sustainable Use of Land program, explains the challenges of water regulation when federal protections are taken away. Jim also offers his thoughts on what may happen if the U.S. Supreme Court’s impending decision in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency results in a rollback in what qualifies as WOTUS.  Listeners hungry for more information on this important topic are encouraged to read Jim’s article from the September 2022 issue of ELR—The Environmental Law Reporter, available for free download here.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Digital technologies have steadily woven themselves into the global economy, transforming the pace at which we access and process information. “Digital sharing services” like Airbnb and Lyft often promise broad society benefits, including a reduction in energy usage, a lower environmental footprint, and more efficient use of existing products. But are these sharing innovations really changing our environmental outlook for the better?  This podcast on digital sharing services is based on comprehensive research by Tamar Makov, Tamar Meshulam, and Sarah Goldberg supported by the Network for the Digital Economy and the Environment (nDEE) with grants from the Internet Society Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The nDEE is a collaboration of the Environmental Law Institute, the Yale School of the Environment, and the University of California Berkeley. ★ Support this podcast ★

Water utilities are tasked with providing clean, affordable water to their constituents, yet, a growing number of utilities are charging high prices for water and/or carrying out policies that decrease, rather than increase, water access. Participatory governance, which aims to enable those who are most closely affected by a problem to influence how policymakers solve that problem, may offer a path to a more just water policy. In “Turning Participation into Power: A Water Justice Case Study,” Prof. Jaime Lee of the University of Baltimore School of Law offers a revamped model of participatory governance she dubs the “Constituent Empowerment Model.” The model, which was recently implemented in Baltimore, Maryland, goes beyond traditional community involvement mechanisms and has the lofty goal of shifting power dynamics. In this episode, Linda Breggin, a Senior Attorney at ELI and Lecturer in Law at Vanderbilt Law School, speaks with Professor Lee to learn more. ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode of the People Places Planet Podcast, ELI’s six summer interns (Jesse Ferraoili, Rebecca Huang, Fatima Lawan, Priyanka Mahat, Raf Rodriguez, and Jeremy Rubin) join host Georgia Ray to reflect on their time as summer interns, talk a little more about who they are, what they are interested in, and what brought them to ELI. They discuss their independent research work, work done on broader projects at the organization, and things they have learned throughout the summer.A Tufts rising senior will tell you about her fight for maternal health in the Black community, especially as it pertains to air quality. Another will dive into uranium contamination in America’s southwest. A third will talk about his work with prison populations and the heat related illnesses that can occur inside the system. All of them will discuss what it was like to work at ELI, how they hope to continue in the environmental space, and the lessons they have learned spending the summer in D.C. You can find Raf and Priyanka on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rafjrodriguez & https://www.linkedin.com/in/priyanka-mahat-b16642151/If you are interested in learning more about The Center for Black Maternal Health & Reproductive Justice at Tufts (with whom Fatima worked closely on her project), you can visit their website. ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode of the People Places Planet Podcast, former Research Associate Shehla Chowdhury joins host Georgia Ray to reflect on her time as a research associate, which ended in June 2022. She discusses her work in the nascent field of environmental peacebuilding, while also delving into her contributions to the local government environmental assistance network, differences between domestic and international environmental work, and her takeaways from studying non-governmental organizations in the Global North and Global South. ★ Support this podcast ★

Interest and urgency in advancing environmental justice has gained new momentum in the United States in recent years. In 2021, we spoke to New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn LaTourette to learn about New Jersey’s newly enacted EJ law. In this latest episode, he joins us again to discuss proposed regulations for implementing the law. The episode is part of the Groundtruth series created in partnership with Beveridge & Diamond, one of the nation’s leading environmental law firms. ★ Support this podcast ★

Interest and urgency in advancing environmental justice has gained new momentum in the United States in recent years. But what about the rest of the world? This episode takes a global look at EJ, including its relationship with human rights and climate justice issues, and shares what companies can do to advance EJ goals more broadly. The episode is part of the Groundtruth series created in partnership with Beveridge & Diamond, one of the nation’s leading environmental law firms. ★ Support this podcast ★

For more than a decade, ELI and Vanderbilt University Law School have featured some of the year’s best academic thinking on legal and policy solutions to pressing environmental problems via the Environmental Law and Policy Annual Review (ELPAR).  Linda Breggin, a Senior Attorney at ELI and a Lecturer in Law at Vanderbilt University Law School who co-founded ELPAR, and Kritsen Sarna, a Vanderbilt law student who served as editor-in-chief, talk to Howard Learner, President and Executive Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center, to find out his thoughts on environmental citizen suits, the subject of one of this year’s featured articles. ★ Support this podcast ★

The Environmental Law Institute’s Blight Revitalization Initiative for Green, Healthy Towns (BRIGHT) program released The BRIGHT Guide to help communities develop and execute corridor projects in their own neighborhoods to produce positive health, ecological, and economic outcomes. In this episode, ELI Research Associate Georgia Ray speaks with Scott Wilson Badenoch Jr., Founder and Executive Director of ELI’s BRIGHT Program; Alda Yuan, Managing Director and Lead Editor of The BRIGHT Guide; and Noble Smith, Guide Author and Editor. Scott, Alda, and Noble explain what is inside The BRIGHT Guide and how it works, who it benefits, and how listeners can get started using the resource in their own communities. To learn how communities are using the guide, watch this free webinar.  ★ Support this podcast ★

As the agency responsible for regulating the interstate transmission of natural gas, oil, and electricity, in addition to natural gas and hydropower projects, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) plays an integral role when it comes to U.S. environmental law and policy. In the latest episode of People Places Planet Podcast, Emily Mallen, a partner at Sidley Austin LLP in Washington, D.C, talks to Matt Christiansen, FERC’s General Counsel. Emily and Matt discuss a variety of topics, including climate change, renewable energy, the grid, and energy justice. To listen, visit www.eli.org/podcasts or find us on your favorite podcast app. ★ Support this podcast ★

El Caño Martín Peña es un canal urbano conectado al estuario de la Bahía de San Juan, ubicado en la ciudad de San Juan, la capital de Puerto Rico. Según el Censo de 2020, existe una densidad poblacional en el área de casi once mil personas. Desafortunadamente, un grave riesgo para los residentes son las constantes inundaciones. En este episodio, Elissa Torres-Soto, abogada de ELI, habla con tres líderes comunitarios jóvenes que viven en el área: Krystal Géigel, Mayrita Rosario y Jeymi Benitez. Los tres son miembros de Líderes Jóvenes en Acción (LIJAC), Young Leaders in Action en inglés. ★ Support this podcast ★

The Martín Peña channel is an urban tidal channel connected to the San Juan Bay Estuary, located in Puerto Rico’s capital of San Juan. According to the 2020 Census, nearly 11,000 people live in the Martin Peña channel area. Sadly, flooding is a constant threat. In this episode, Elissa Torres-Soto, a Staff Attorney at ELI, speaks with three young activists from the area: Krystal Géigel, Mayrita Rosario, and Jeymi Benítez. The trio are members of Líderes Jóvenes en Acción (LIJAC), which in English translates to Young Leaders in Action. ★ Support this podcast ★

Since 1989, ELI has honored over 200 champions of wetlands protection through the National Wetlands Awards program, which recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional effort, innovation, and excellence in protecting these critical ecosystems. In this episode, hear from our five 2022 awardees, who share their perspectives and insight on a variety of wetlands-related matters.  ★ Support this podcast ★

More than 30 years ago, roughly 1,100 people attended the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C., to discuss the environmental injustices they were experiencing in their communities. Considered by many as the birth of the environmental justice movement, the four-day summit concluded with the adoption of the 17 Principles of Environmental Justice, still relevant today. In this episode, ELI’s Arielle King meets with key organizers and leaders of the historical summit: Vernice Miller-Travis and Charles Lee. The episode is part of the Groundtruth series created in partnership with Beveridge & Diamond, one of the nation’s leading environmental law firms.  ★ Support this podcast ★

ELI’s Climate Judiciary Project bridges the gap between the climate science community and the judiciary, providing judges with neutral, objective information about the science of climate change. In this episode, ELI Research Associate Heather Luedke talks to Sandy Nichols Thiam, ELI’s Director of Judicial Education, and Dr. Paul Hanle, the Project Founder, to learn more.  ★ Support this podcast ★

One of the defining issues of our time – sea level rise – promises to impact millions of Americans in the coming years and decades.  But while the science of sea level rise is becoming more and more accurate and predictable, and the need to adapt to a changing future more clear, the legal and policy implications of doing so are anything but obvious. In this episode, Jarryd Page, a staff attorney at ELI, talks about sea level rise with Robin Kundis Craig, the Robert C. Packard Trustee Chair in Law at the University of Southern California School of Law. ★ Support this podcast ★

As the Agency responsible for protecting human health and the environment across the entirety of the United States, EPA has developed EJSCREEN, a mapping and screening tool that combines environmental and demographic data to highlight areas with potential environmental justice concerns. In February, EPA released EJSCREEN 2.0, adding new indicators and datasets to the tool. In this episode, Nicole Noelliste, a managing associate in the environmental practice at Sidley Austin LLP, talks to Matthew Tejada, Director of EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice, and Tai Lung, also with EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice, to learn about EJSCREEN 2.0. ★ Support this podcast ★

Linda Breggin, a Senior Attorney at ELI and Director of ELI’s Center for State, Tribal and Local Environmental Programs, talks to Professors Monte Mills and Martin Nie about their article, Bridges to a New Era: A Report on the Past, Present, and Potential Future of Tribal Co-Management on Federal Public Lands. In it, they posit that the United States can meaningfully connect public land law to the federal government’s long-standing trust-based and treaty-based responsibility to promote the sovereign and cultural interests of Native Nations and enhance and engage in a new era of tribal co-management across the federal public land system. The article received honorable mention in this year’s Environmental Law and Policy Annual Review (ELPAR), a 15-year collaboration between ELI and Vanderbilt University Law School. Vanderbilt Law students Connor Kridle and Thomas Boynton join in on the conversation.  ★ Support this podcast ★

As climate change impacts become more visible and the urgency for climate action continues, it is important to remember that we need to address emissions from all sectors, not just from fossil fuels. In this episode, we dig into the policies, legal reforms, and actions the United States should undertake to make the agricultural industry carbon neutral.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Interest and urgency in advancing environmental justice (EJ) has gained new momentum. As such, it is becoming increasingly important for companies to proactively address EJ issues. How might companies’ environmental, social, and governance (ESG) commitments strengthen and work in tandem with EJ initiatives?  In this episode, Stacey Sublett Halliday and Julius Redd of Beveridge & Diamond recap recent EJ policy developments and then talk with Matthew Tejada, Director of EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice, and Samantha Phillips Beers, Director of the EPA Region III Office of Communities, Tribes, and Environmental Assessment, about the intersection of EJ and ESG. The episode is part of the Groundtruth series created in partnership with Beveridge & Diamond, one of the nation’s leading environmental law firms. ★ Support this podcast ★

This past spring, the Environmental Law Institute released A Toolkit for Incorporating Food Waste in Municipal Climate Action Plans, which provides municipalities and stakeholders with model provisions that will make it easier to incorporate food waste measures into municipal climate action plans. In this episode, ELI’s Linda Breggin and Akielly Hu speak to contributors to the report, Kendra Abkowitz, Chief Sustainability and Resilience Officer at Metro Nashville/Davidson County, and Darby Hoover, a Senior Resource Specialist at the NRDC.  ★ Support this podcast ★

On February 14, ELI launched the Pro Bono Clearinghouse to ensure that communities with viable environmental legal matters get the representation they need, whether that be in a courtroom, in front of an agency, or in a more facilitative or consultative fashion. In this episode, Kristine Perry, a staff attorney at ELI, is joined by Scott Wilson Badenoch Jr., a Visiting Attorney at ELI, and Arielle King, ELI’s Environmental Justice Staff Attorney, to talk about ELI’s newest environmental justice initiative and how it works.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Environmental Justice (EJ) has gained new momentum in recent years, amplified by a global focus on social justice, climate, and equity. Yet this new-found energy and focus on environmental is best understood through the lens of those who have been working toward EJ for decades. In this episode, John Cruden, a Principal at Beveridge & Diamond, talks to renowned EJ leader and advocate Benjamin F. Wilson. Ben, who recently retired after serving years as Chairman of Beveridge & Diamond, has deep experience with EJ representations and is a recognized leader on diversity, equity and inclusion issues in the legal profession. ★ Support this podcast ★

Sharks play an essential role in the marine ecosystem. But many species of migratory sharks and rays have become endangered due to overfishing and excessive bycatch in industrial fisheries. And given their migratory nature, sharks and rays are “beyond the national jurisdiction” of any one nation and therefore difficult to protect and regulate. Greta Swanson, a Visiting Attorney at ELI, offers insight on key international agreements that regulate the conservation and management of migratory sharks and rays. ★ Support this podcast ★

Environmental justice embraces the principle that all people deserve equal access to environmental protection and enforcement while acknowledging the fact that, both historically and still today, this fails to play out in reality. Recognizing that the legal system has contributed to an unequal distribution of environmental burdens and benefits, ELI is committed to providing research and educational tools to help alleviate the harm faced by environmental justice communities across the nation. In this episode, Arielle King, ELI’s Environmental Justice Staff Attorney, shares with listeners some of the tools ELI is developing to eliminate the harmful impacts of environmental injustice.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Last November, as the world focused its attention on the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland, high school students in Dane County, Wisconsin, co-sponsored and moderated a climate action conference of their own that connected COP26 to local climate initiatives and progress. Rebecca Kihslinger, a Senior Science and Policy Analyst at ELI, talks to four of the student organizers — Daphne Wu, Claire Neblett, Kirshna Elwell, and Felicia Zheng — to learn more.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Interest and urgency in advancing environmental justice has gained new momentum. The Biden-Harris Administration has placed an unprecedented federal focus on environmental justice using a whole of government approach. Meanwhile, a growing list of states continue to develop, implement, and enforce EJ-focused legislation, accelerated by the intensity at the federal level. Will this momentum carry into the new year? In this episode, Stacey Halliday of Beveridge & Diamond talks to two EJ leaders at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — Charles Lee, Senior Policy Advisor, and Matthew Tejada, the Director of the Office of Environmental Justice – to find out  what’s in store for 2022. This episode is part of the Groundtruth series created in partnership with Beveridge & Diamond, one of the nation’s leading environmental law firms.  ★ Support this podcast ★

Land use climate bubbles are popping up all over the nation at an alarming rate, and they could very well lead to an economic crisis that will be more damaging than that of the housing bubble of 2008. What can we do to respond? Land Use Law expert John Nolon describes how the local land use legal system can leverage state and federal assistance to reduce per capita carbon emissions as an important and now recognized component of global efforts to manage climate change. The podcast is being released in tandem with CNN’s Call to Earth Day, an initiative to share the stories of those dedicated to conservation, environmentalism, and sustainability.  ★ Support this podcast ★