This month we recognize and celebrate the work of the Black community, especially their contributions to the environmental field. Three icons who made huge advancements for us in this field are (from left to right): Dr. Warren Washington, Dr. Wangari Maathai, and Dr. Robert Bullard.

Dr. Washington is a meteorologist and climate pioneer. In the 1960s he was one of the first people to develop an atmospheric computer model. These original models influence the global climate models we have today.

Dr. Maathai founded the Greenbelt movement which is a community tree planting initiative that aims to reduce poverty and encourage environmental conservation (1977). Since then, 51 MILLION TREES have been planted.

And Dr. Bullard is known as the Father of Environmental Justice. His advocacy work against harmful waste being dumped in pre-dominantly Black communities (1970-Present) has been extremely influential.

Let’s give thanks to the leaders of the past and look towards the leaders of the future (click the button below for more insight into future leaders).

01/2024

In January we celebrated the newest member of our BIPOC Fellowship program, Erica Ellis! She is the Co-Executive Director of Programs & Operations at the Environmental Youth Alliance which operates on the unceded, shared territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, also known as Vancouver, BC. The EYA strives to empower youth from equity-deserving communities to become environmental stewards through programs which allow them to connect with urban greenspaces. We fully support their vision. and if you want to learn more about it visit the Team’s page for Erica’s profile!

12/12/2013

At the end of 2023, our BIPOC Fellowship annual report was created to highlight all of the new fellows that joined and the accomplishments of the veteran fellows who had been working hard all year.

This report gives an overview of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the Canadian environmental sector, a history of the fellowship, and our funding partners. It outlines key information about the fellowship’s progress this past year, so give it a read!

11/2023

We're ecstatic to introduce our newest fellow, Tyjana Connolly! She is the co-founder and now executive director of Black Eco Bloom, a nonprofit organization based in Alberta. Tyjana was raised in a household that prioritized sustainability, and as she got older she became passionate about caring for the environment. She also saw a disproportion in who was being affected by climate change and who could most easily transition to a more sustainable life. Furthermore, she saw a major lack of equity, diversity, and inclusion in the sector, and she wanted to do something about it. Even though it’s not often talked about inequalities and racism are present in the environmental sector, through workforce and which voices within the workforce are heard. Black Eco Bloom is centered around black empowerment and climate justice. Her organization is streamlined to focus on 4 main program streams: Black Women in Environment, Community and Capacity Building, Blooming Without Boundaries, and Climate Change from the Black Perspective.

11-13/10/2023

October 11th-13th was the first Global Forum for Climate Justice Conference. It was hosted by Alder University and took place Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. One of our BIPOC fellows, Jasveen Brar, was a keynote speaker and delivered an engaging talk about her journey in the sector and how that led her to her current position. She explained what her organization - Youth Climate Lab - does and how important collaboration is to successfully completing work in the sector. Many environmental organizations have overlapping goals, so why not use that and work together to accomplish them! It was clear that this was true as many of the attendees knew each other from their previous projects. Attendees ranged from politicians, to nonprofit owners, to university students. Over the course of the three days, there were many small group activities, large group discussions, speakers, panels, and grounding exercises. To learn more about the event click the link below.

09/28/2023 12:00-1:30PM

On September 28th we hosted a BIPOC Fellowship Roundtable focusing on good news in the sector! We reviewed success stories incorporating equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace and reflected on our own success stories. There are many barriers and challenges when it comes to getting EDI right, but we have to remind ourselves of why we do it and celebrate the little wins. Promoting EDI is so important because it helps to dismantle the structural racism that has plagued the workforce for centuries. On top of the ethical reasoning, many scientific research studies have found that when done properly, increasing diversity leads to an increase in creativity, productivity, and accordingly revenue for a company. We've all been taught that having a diverse set of perspectives leads to a better product, which of course translates to all aspects of a business. This is why one of the top priorities of BIPOC fellows is to ensure EDI within their companies- something that all fellows excel at!