Climate Justice, Y'all

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

This season, without planning it, maps a clear throughline from plantations to pollution, while spotlighting living in a new technological and political age. Tune in to hear the hosts discuss the overarching narrative of the season, their favorite episodes and topics, and what they hope for the future of the podcast and our planet.

A heartfelt thank you to all of the incredible guests who shared their stories, insights, and expertise throughout this season. We’re also deeply grateful to our listeners for tuning in, engaging with these conversations, and supporting the podcast every step of the way. We can’t wait to bring you Season 7 next year with even more inspiring conversations. Until then, thank you for listening!

The post S6E8: Season Finale: Changing Times and Southern Throughline appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

In this episode, we’re joined by Jaha Nailah Avery, host and reporter of The Corridor, a Threshold series about “history, pollution, and resistance on the front lines of America’s petrochemical industry” (thresholdpodcast.org/the-corridor). Jaha recounts her experiences with The Corridor, from developing the pitch, to hearing the personal stories, to recording the seven episode series.

“Each season, Threshold takes listeners on a journey into the heart of a complex environmental story—about a species, a place, an idea, a controversy, or a question—that they think deserves attention. It’s a show as much about relationships as it is about the environment. And relationships are complicated. Threshold steps into that complexity, revealing the challenges and possibilities in our relationship with the planet” (thresholdpodcast.org/about).

Jaha Nailah Avery is a writer and author whose work has appeared in Essence, The New York Times, Rolling Stone, Architectural Digest, and Vanity Fair. Dedicated to preserving and celebrating Black stories and history, she is the author of Those Who Saw The Sun, a collection of interviews with Jim Crow survivors, and I Heard, an illustrated poem spanning more than 400 years of Black history.

The post S6E7: Southern Journalism with Threshold’s Jaha Nailah Avery appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

Climate disasters are accelerating, but so are solutions. In this episode, we talk with Cat Hebson (Footprint Project) and Moira Haynes (Empowered by Light) about how climate-resilient tech is helping communities respond to extreme weather and failing infrastructure across the U.S. and the global south. Join us as we hear from these amazing women about action already happening on the ground.

Catherine Hebson is the Program Manager, Appalachia of Footprint Project. She, and the Footprint Project, sees every disaster as an opportunity to build back cleaner and greener. Cat is originally from Maine, and has been based in Asheville, NC for the last five years, and is passionate about supporting her region build back more resiliently from Helene. She has a varied background in mechanical engineering, working with Climate Scientists in a remote solar-powered camp on the Greenland Ice Sheet, and community organizing. 

Footprint Project aims to “help build back greener after climate disasters by mobilizing cleaner energy for communities in crisis. [Their] vision is to decarbonize disaster response and empower community resilience in the face of increasing extreme weather events. [They] work across the disaster management cycle to expand frontline access to climate technologies and reduce fossil fuel use in the field.”

Moira Hanes is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Empowered by Light. Moira has over 10 years experience supporting philanthropic initiatives to increase energy access, displace diesel and build resiliency in vulnerable communities and regions. Moira has over 20 years of combined experience serving on the boards of nonprofit organizations. Prior to Empowered by Light, Moira worked more than a decade in corporate communications and government and community relations roles for a Fortune 500 company.

Empowered by Light is on a mission to transform life through renewable energy systems. They are harnessing solar energy to power opportunity, protect ecosystems, and build resilience where it’s needed most. By partnering with local communities, their projects displace fossil fuels, strengthen essential services, and support people who safeguard some of the world’s most fragile environments.

The post S6E6: Climate Resilience Tech with With Cat Hebson and Moira Hanes appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

AI data centers are popping up all over the South, extracting resources from communities and increasing power bills. In this episode, we sit down with the leaders of the new Minus AI campaign, Lindsay Harper and Reverend Michael Malcom of our own People’s Justice Council and Power for Southern People Not Southern Company, to unpack what this surge in AI infrastructure means for Southern communities.

From corporate accountability to energy justice, we’re breaking down who benefits, who pays, and how communities are organizing to push back.

The post S6E5: Reducing AI Impact: Minus AI with Reverend Michael Malcom and Lindsay Harper appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

In this episode, we talk with Chandra Taylor-Sawyer, Senior Attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center about Environmental Justice communities in the South, their ties to former plantation lands, and how strategic legal action can empower communities facing environmental harm.

Southern Environmental Law Center is a nonprofit, nonpartisan legal team working across five Southern states to protect people and the environment. In addition to her position as Senior Attorney in which she specializing in water quality and environmental justice issues, Chandra Taylor-Sawyer also serves as leader of the Environmental Justice Initiative at SELC. A native of Kinston in eastern North Carolina, Taylor-Sawyer earned her undergraduate and law degree from the University of North Carolina, and she was a fellow with the Vermont Law School Environmental Justice Exchange Program between the U.S. and China. She has led work in North Carolina to force cleanups at contaminated industrial sites, stop water pollution threatening North Carolina communities, and shaped transit and landfill policies.

The post S6E4: From Plantations to People-Powered Resistance: Environmental Justice with Chandra Taylor-Sawyer appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

Southerners experience some of the highest rates of energy burden in the country, meaning we spend the highest percentage of income on energy costs. Proper policy can reduce the costs of energy, implement efficiency measures, and discourage political corruption from monopoly energy companies. We’re here with one of the folks working on energy policy in Alabama, where he’ll outline the unique realities of the state’s energy regulatory landscape, potential for diversified energy, and what it means to work on creating change at the legislative level.

John Dodd serves as Policy Manager for Energy Alabama. He previously served as a member of the operations team for the House Democratic Caucus under the leadership of Democratic Caucus Chairman, Rep. Hakeem Jefferies and Southwest Field Director for Stacey Abrams, and positions within the administrations of Mayor Randall Woodfin of Birmingham and Mayor Walt Maddox of Tuscaloosa. John graduated from the University of Alabama in 2022 with degrees in Political Science and Public Relations and attained his master’s in public administration in May 2024.

The post S6E3: Southern Energy Politics with John Dodd appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

Louisiana is a classic example of fascinating culture and ecosystems at risk due to petrochemical pollution, climate change impacts, and land loss. Unfortunately, many people in the South, US, and world as a whole are having to grapple with the question of whether to move away or adapt to the dangerous environment in the communities they’ve called home for generations.

In this episode, we bring in community organizer Jack Green with the RISE St. James organization, who fights for the health, dignity, and survival of Louisiana communities. Discussing everything (from Louisiana’s spongy soil, to infrastructure, to climate refugees), this is an episode that will hopefully bring some hope and remind people to have faith when fighting fascism.

The post S6E2: Surviving Land Loss and Climate Change with Jack Green appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.

This is Climate Justice, Y'all!, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and environmental justice movement in the South. Climate Justice, Y'all

Welcome to Season 6 of Climate Justice Y’all, a podcast dedicated to lifting up and centering the climate and EJ movement in the south. In this season, we’ll cover hot topics such as “surviving land loss and finding joy”, “climate adaptation tech”, “corporate sustainability”, and more! In our first episode, we’ll be excitedly introducing our fresh additional co-hosts for the podcast, Madison Naves with GASP and Yuri Owens with SCEN. Get to know them as they tell their stories before we dive deep into climate solutions in the South.

Madison Naves serves as Storyteller at GASP. Learn more about GASP here!

Maréshah Malcom serves as Program Manager at People’s Justice Council. Learn more about the People’s Justice Council here!

Yuri Owens serves as Programs Coordinator alongside colleague Abigail Franks who serves as Membership and Policy Manager at SCEN. Learn more about the Southeast Climate and Energy Network here!

The post S6E1: Allow Us to (Re) Introduce Ourselves- Welcome to Season 6 with Madison and Yuri appeared first on Climate Justice, Y'all.