Growing up in the Mississippi Delta, much of Heather McTeer Toney’s life was tied to the environment, from food and agriculture to the levees holding back the Mississippi River. But it wasn’t until she was mayor of her hometown and working on a water issue that she realized the connection between climate and social justice. Heather is now senior adviser at Moms Clean Air Force, a group that works to protect children from air pollution and climate change, and climate justice liaison at the Environmental Defense Fund. She joined David to talk about her childhood steeped in the fight for civil rights, how climate and racial justice intersect, and why she believes fighting for voting rights is a vital component of climate activism.

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