In times of change and upheaval, there is also room for hope and inspiration. While we collectively have much hard work ahead of us, we also have much to commend. Our hope is that this report offers insight into the work that your support makes possible – and inspiration for what we know we can accomplish together.
This Field Guide describes how the partners in the Healthy Neighborhoods Study do research in 9 communities in Greater Metropolitan Boston. The project uses the Participatory Action Research (PAR) approach, which is grounded in the idea that the people who are most impacted by a problem are in the best position to understand and solve that problem. After years of research together, we wrote this guide for other communities interested in Participatory Action Research.
East Boston residents overwhelmingly oppose a proposal to build a massive electrical substation in their neighborhood. In a case highlighting issues of language justice, many residents have been unable to participate fully in public proceedings because of inadequate translation services. CLF and our partners have filed a formal complaint to hold officials accountable.
This spring, the Trump administration reversed stronger protections for our nation’s waters, putting people, animals, and local businesses at risk. CLF and our partners are fighting this latest attack: We’re taking the administration to court.
“Electric cars, trucks, and buses are the future,” said CLF Senior Attorney Emily Green. “Cutting transportation emissions to zero is a critical piece of confronting the climate crisis and protecting public health from toxic exhaust. This is yet another example of states leading the way while the federal government turns back the clock on environmental progress.
Like COVID-19, severe heat waves are not an “equal opportunity” health threat. The most disinvested neighborhoods — those dominated by buildings, pavement, and parking lots — are hit the hardest. The built environment of these places absorbs and traps heat, creating a “heat island effect” that makes them dangerously hotter than other neighborhoods while worsening their air quality.
Communities of color and those with low incomes not only deserve to enjoy waterfront open spaces for recreation and exercise – it’s also their right by law. And yet, through neglect and outright refusal by corporate interests, too many do not have the chance to run, walk, or even stretch near the water. We can and must do better.
“The FMCB took on a monumental challenge and helped stabilize the T during a time of crisis,” said Staci Rubin, Senior Attorney at CLF. “Now was simply not the time to let the T board dissolve, and the legislature clearly recognized that fact. A one-year extension is a good interim step, and we look forward to working with the legislature to implement a permanent T successor board that includes riders and is empowered to create a world-class transportation system for the region.”
Decades of environmental injustices won’t be addressed without strong legislation to drive change. Local organizations are working to reduce burdens on environmental justice communities, but it’s up to the Massachusetts legislature to redress decades of wrongs and put our state on a path to a more equitable future.
After a victory in the first phase of our lawsuit to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales, now we’re asking the court for protective measures in the second phase.
