Energy and Environmental Justice

Before I started my journey in the energy sector, I would often leave the lights on in a room I no longer occupied or left the T.V. on while I was sleeping. Energy as a resource was not something I considered in my day to day life. Even after obtaining internships, co-ops and education in the field I still had no anchor or direction to guide my work.

All of that changed when I started to learn about environmental justice. Environmental justice (EJ) is defined as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, no matter their race, socioeconomic status, or identity, to participate in the law, policy, and advocacy of environmental solutions. The leaders of the EJ movement are still alive and fighting. Their names and contributions are the following:

Dr. Beverly Wright - Executive Director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice

Dr. Robert Bullard - Executive Director of the Bullard Center for Climate and Environmental Justice

Peggie Shepherd - Executive Director of WE ACT For Environmental Justice

Vernice Miller-Travis - Co-founder of WE ACT For Environmental Justice

There are many additional leaders of the EJ movement not mentioned, and their work is the foundation for the environmental actions and policies that drive progress today. Well, what was progress is now under a microscope with the Trump Administration. The battle of EJ is not lost on its founders, and after attending the 10th Annual HBCU Climate Change Conference, I am certain the students that will birth into future leaders of the movement are unwavering.

Now, what is the connection between energy and environmental justice?

Let's start with the basics. Energy is neither created nor destroyed, only transferred from one source to another. The way we obtain electricity in the United States of America is a mix of non-renewable sources (coal, natural gas, and nuclear) and renewable sources (solar, wind, hydro, and biomass). There are few similarities between non-renewables and renewables such as their ability to transform resources into electricity. However, the major difference is the amount of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) that is released as a by-product of this transformation process. The amount of emissions, or pollution, from the non-renewable energy sources have contributed to climate change on a macro level and unsafe environmental conditions at the micro level. This is the essence of the connection between energy and environmental justice.

Renewable energy is a promising solutions for cutting down greenhouse gas emissions while providing healthier air for communities to thrive. According to the 2025 Renewable Energy Capacity Report, published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) there were interesting findings about the U.S. renewable energy mix. Here are a few key statistics that I took away from the report:

• USA has produced nearly 430,000 MW Megawatts of renewable energy in 2024

• Hydro power makes up rough 100,000 MW of this mix - and this figure has not changed from 2015 - 2024

• Wind power makes up roughly 153,000 MW of this mix - and this figure has doubled since 2015 (mostly on shore)

• Off-shore wind only accounts for 171MW of this energy mix

• Solar power makes up roughly 177,000MW of this mix - the most of any renewable energy source - and the fastest growing from 2015 where there was only 24,000 MW on the grid.

These are significant findings and I look forward to parsing through the report in my spare time. In closing, the former EPA Admin Michael Regan was instrumental in creating the $27B federally backed 'Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund'. Within this fund was $7B allocated to 'Solar For All' which would allow national and statewide recipients to invest in solar infrastructure to help combat greenhouse gas emissions from non-renewable sources. While this program has been in flux, funding cut off at the beginning of the year, and reinstated a few weeks ago, no one is certain these dollars will turn into development.

This is the relationship between energy and environmental justice.