Reflections

By: Laura Love, love.laura.j@gmail.com Long-lived lineages weaving through Black, white and Indigenous families and a gentle abundance of green flowing everywhere were the first impressions of Rockingham and Richmond County that…

Dr. Chris Lamont Brown & Corey Curtis, Research and Education Team, NCEJN Last week we launched “E-I-E-I-O No!” on Zooniverse, a community science initiative designed to map the hidden footprint…

Munir Abdul-Hakim, Muslims for Social Justice / People’s Power Lab Rania Masri asked me to write a reflection on “the surge in kidnappings by ICE.” She’s right to call it…

Emma Jo Donnelly, NCEJN’s Public Historian I inherited my strong commitment to justice from my parents and my grandmother. My grandmother was the first woman to become president of her…

Kayan Cheung-Miaw (she/they | ella/elle), Inclusive Economies Project Director, United for a Fair Economy The NC General Assembly is trying to push four constitutional amendments that would impact NC for…

Debra Goldberg, Greenfield Resident I am a resident of Greenfield, a community located less than a quarter mile from Pitt/Greenville Airport. I can walk to the runway in under five…

Chris Lamont Brown, NCEJN Co Director On Monday, Warren County Board of Commissioners unanimously voted to reject a text amendment to their solar ordinance, effectively ending a 900-acre solar project…

Leticia Zavala, El Futuro Es Nuestro Dear friends and allies,  As you all know we have been fighting for water, breaks, right to medical attention and an emergency plan in…

Get free curriculum, training, and support running community assemblies. contact: dominique.beaudry@duke.edu Who Am I?  My name’s Dominique, and I’m a graduating Master of Public Policy student. After teaching high school…

Hosted by NCWARN, on Tuesday March 24th, 2026, Dr. Rania Masri (NCEJN co-director) gave a talk on the climate and environmental impacts of imperialism. You can watch the talk here.…

Yesenia Cuello, NC Field + NCEJN Board Co-Chair We’re encouraged to see federal authorities investigating and bringing charges in this Washington, N.C. forced labor case. Accountability matters. But we also know this…

Danielle Purifoy (JD, PhD), is a former NCEJN Board Member, a UNC-CH Assistant Professor, Dept. of Geography & The Environment, and an author of so many articles relevant to our…

Dr. Rania Masri, NCEJN Co-director, gave a variation on this speech on January 20, 2026 for Democracy Out Loud [Updated February 20, 2026] There is a new monster spreading like…

Rania Masri, NCEJN Co-Director, gave this speech on Monday, January 19, 2026 at the annual MLK March & Rally at the Thomas Foreman Park in Greenville, organized by Coalition Against…

This speech was given on Monday, January 19, 2026 at the annual MLK March & Rally organized by the Coalition Against Racism (CAR) at the Thomas Foreman Park in Greenville,…

A New Durham-Rooted Land, Housing and Environmental Justice Org/Co-Op Leslie St Dre, Founder, Organizer, Facilitator, Community Land and Power Community Land and Power (CLP), a new Durham-rooted land, housing and…

Luma Kennedy, NCEJN Communications Manager Last year on a warm December day, a chef, a farmer, an anthropologist and I took a walk on hallowed ground. Chef Wayne took Ms.…

Dr. Rania Masri, NCEJN Director of Organizing & Policy The National People’s Hearing Tour, which began in Greensboro in June, has traveled to Tuscan (September) and Pittsburgh (November). The full testimonies…

Dr. Rania Masri, NCEJN Co-Director There is much to fight for. There is much to win.  And one fight now is to protect communities and the precious land and water…

Rania Masri, NCEJN Director of Organizing and Policy We are in a moment of clarity: the veil has fallen. The U.S. federal administration today is openly and brazenly showcasing its…

A Decolonial Perspective on Knowledge and Expertise With permission from the author : Tania Shoukair, Decolonized Mind-body Coach, Writer & Poet, Embodied Expert in Cooking! Colonialism was never just about…

Yesterday afternoon, NCEJN joined UE Local 150 and JVP triangle and other NC organizations for an event organized by the Break the Bonds NC Coalition. A petition was delivered to…

This is a collective statement and it is published here with permission from the Black Workers League. “No movement can survive unless it is constantly growing and changing with the…

Sun Day and Make Billionaires Pay- September 21, 2025 – Rania Masri, NCEJN Director of Organizing & Policy I was asked to speak on climate change, immigration, and fascism.  Three…

Bea Baxley, NCEJN 2025 Intern I grew up in the suburban bubble that is Chapel Hill, and I never felt a strong connection to North Carolina. I didn’t feel that…

Ya Basta! Enough is Enough!  by Linda Robles, founder of The Envrionmental Justice Task Force Introduction My name is Linda Robles, I was born in the 1960s, and have lived…

On Tuesday August 19th, 2025, a public hearing was held on the renewal of the NPDES permit to Alcoa’s Badin Business Park. Among the 21 speakers, 14 spoke critically of…

On Tuesday August 19th, 2025, a public hearing was held on the renewal of the NPDES permit to Alcoa’s Badin Business Park. Among the 21 speakers, 14 spoke critically of…

At NCEJN, we have been searching for a 401(k) service provider for our staff. While our financial resources are modest, we firmly believe that everyone deserves access to retirement and…

My name is Rev. Mac Legerton. I serve as Co-Director of the Robeson County Cooperative for Sustainable Development (RCCSD). I’m here today to sound the alarm about NC’s 30-year energy…

yh Patt gave testimony at the People’s Hearing on Wednesday, June 11 in Greensboro. Hello,  My name is “yh”.  That is, one letter from my mother and another from my father. …

Madhusudan Katti, Assoc Professor and Director of Science, Technology and Society + Leadership in Public Science, Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at NCSU, gave this testimony at the People’s…

Tina Shull, PhD, UNC Charlotte professor, at the Peoples Hearing (June 11, 2025) It’s an honor to be here and participate in solidarity; thank you NCEJN for your organizing and…

Shaun McMillan, educator and activist with Blueprint NC, gave testimony at the People’s Hearing on Wednesday, June 11 in Greensboro.   Good morning my name is Shaun McMillan. I use he,…

Amy Elkins, Community Health Worker and Co-Founder of NC Field gives a testimony on exploitation, environmental racism & systemic neglect of latino communities in Eastern North Carolina. Amy Elkins represented…

Bea Baxley, 2025 NCEJN Intern Bingham park, through the chain-link fence, is beautiful. Today is a perfect day to spend in a park, one of the last sub-75° Saturday mornings…

Dani Lin Hunter, NCEJN Research and Education Manager I promised Luma and Rania I would write a reflection, and truthfully, I’m not sure what I have to say right now…

Today we proudly congratulate our 2025 graduating interns!Colleen Dongarra and Rhiannon Williams, our Research and Education interns, and Emma Jo Donnelly, our Archival intern, have each made invaluable contributions to…

Kayla Bacote, Program Officer at Cypress Fund – “a social justice intermediary focused on strategically investing funding and people power to strengthen and fortify the movement ecosystem in North and South Carolina…

Today is May 1st- International Workers’ Day. NCEJN will be in Raleigh at the May Day event – to demand justice and dignity for workers and to protest against the…

Vidal Lormendez, a Community Health Worker and the Migrant Services Specialist at NC FIELD. Vidal regularly helps design, test, and implement projects alongside our agricultural workforce across 41 eastern North Carolina…

Carson Mease, Sustainable Development undergraduate student at Appalachian State University On the 18th of October, 2024, students of Appalachian State University’s Applications in Environmental Justice class traveled to Whitakers, North…

Reverend Wesley Morris, Senior Pastor at Faith Community Church These words were transcribed from a recording made at the Black Workers for Justice Banquet, of Reverend Wesley Morris, Senior Pastor…

Anthony Diaz, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Newark Water Coalition My name is Anthony Diaz and I am the co-founder and executive director of the Newark Water Coalition. Newark Water…

Nicholas Johnson, Former Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Prospect Airport Services Employee. Nick was born and raised in Charlotte, NC. In the summer of 2024, I worked at Charlotte Douglas International…

This speech was given by Dr. Dani Lin Hunter, NCEJN Research and Education Manager at Halifax Mall in Raleigh, NC on March 8, 2025 as part of the Stand Up…

Ms. Belinda Joyner, Concerned Citizens of Northampton County Right after Hurricane Katrina, there were two men that moved to Durham from New Orleans. One of the men had nowhere to…

Caption: Peter Gillbert, Naeema Muhammad, Elizabeth Haddix, & Don Cavellini at NCEJN’s Annual Summit Peter Gilbert, Supervising Attorney at Legal Aid of North Carolina, and NCEJN Board Co-Chair.   I am honored…

M. Zulayka Santiago, MPA. ​Founder & Creative Director Libelula Consulting, and departing NCEJN Board Co-Chair. Read her book! Although I have admired the work of NCEJN for many years, my formal relationship with this…

Photo credit to John McCann at North Carolina Black Alliance Gino Nuzzolillo, Campaigns Manager, Common Cause North Carolina The North Carolina Supreme Court is among the most important institutions we…

Dominique Beaudry, Graduate Student at Duke University “If you’re from Concord, go get your thyroid checked!” a friend posted on her instagram. After noticing a lump in my neck, I…

Doris T. Davis, Assistant Director. Concerned Citizens of Tillery The Concerned Citizens of Tillery (CCT), a non-profit social change organization celebrating 45 years of positive social change is one of the…

Araceli Argueta, Organizing and Advocacy Director for AFSC’s New Jersey Immigrant Rights Program. It has been less than two weeks, and Trump’s Executive Orders have had rippling effects across North…

Beverly Payne, Tribal Council Member of the Occaneechi community, walks along the historic Trading Path in Hawfields Cemetery in Mebane, North Carolina. Photo courtesy of Roderico Y. Díaz, Iximché Media.

Rania Masri, NCEJN Director of Policy and Organizing, gave these concluding remarks given at the Merchants of Death War Crimes Tribunal press conference on January 15, 2025. (Watch) The Final Report of this Tribunal begins by…

Dr. Valerie Ann Johnson, NCEJN Director of Infrastructure and Development A new year can start at any time.  Across our planet, worldwide celebrations ushered in 2025 on January 1st.  …

Yesenia Cuello, Executive Director, NC FIELD, Inc For thousands of people employed in the multi-billion dollar industry of agribusiness across North Carolina, the phrase “environmental justice” often feels like a…

Dr. Elizabeth (Libby) McClure, Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology at UNC Last week I talked with someone working in one of the many care hubs that community organizations and mutual…

Luma Kennedy, NCEJN Communications Manager Species extinction is a serious issue that is already impacting every aspect of our lives. The data is staggering. Industry, industrial agriculture, unchecked development, mining,…

First we hear from Mama Naeema Muhammad: “First and foremost, we always called him the “People’s Professor”—a term of endearment from the community. We loved Steve for his humility; when he…

Aleena Oakley, NCEJN Hi! My name is Aleena Oakley; I’m a lifelong NC resident with roots in the Charlotte area, and I have been working with NCEJN and the Concerned…

Anita Cunningham, Executive Director, NC Climate Solutions Coalition, Director, NC Disaster Response and Resilience Network First, let me say the NC Environmental Justice Summit had everything I needed to nurture my body, mind…

Ashley Daniels, NCEJN Team Member In September 2024, NCEJN introduced a new offering: Resource Readiness Workshops for grassroots EJ leaders in the state. The ten participating organizations were concentrated in…

Denise Robinson, Deputy Director of Environmental Justice Community Action Network (EJCAN) On August 30, on behalf of EJCAN (the Environmental Justice Community Action Network) the Southern Environmental Law Center filed…

yh Patt, J.D., Ph.D, long time activist in social & environmental justice This year, I trained with the Anne Braden Program (ABP), which is an anti-racist training for white people.…

Dr. Kim. E. Koo, Rocky Mount Racial Justice Group On September 1st, a strategic meeting was held by a coalition of organizations (El Futuro es Nuestro, NCEJN, USSW and FAN)…

Colleen Dongarra, NCEJN Intern 2024 I view spiderwebs differently now. They used to be a nuisance – something I stumbled into during an early morning hike. I would feel a…

Chelsea Lundquist-Wentz, NCSU’s Campus Community Alliance for Environmental Justice (CCAEJ) Founding Member In December 2023, as Poe Hall’s closure sent classes online and ousted faculty and graduate students from their…

Beverly A. Scarlett, Co-Founder & Director of Education, Indigenous Memories Few people are willing and less can express gratitude for togetherness. Something so simple can be challenging, but not for…

Don Cavellini, Co-Chair, Pitt Co. Coalition Against Racism (CAR) We have experienced a greater willingness among progressive activists to collaborate with like-minded colleagues. This seems to be true for individuals…

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Dr. Dani Lin Hunter, NCEJN Research & Education Manager Hi everyone! This past week I had the opportunity to visit the beautiful mountains of Cherokee, North Carolina, to attend the…

Leticia Zavala, Co-Coordinator, El Futuro Es Nuestro On July 7th, I got a call from a worker saying, “Lety another worker passed away from heat, I don’t know who or where…

Dr. Chris Hawn, NCEJN Co-director of Research & Education This week I joined government officials, advocates, and EJ leaders from across the country to mark the one year anniversary of…

Dr. Valerie Anne Johnson, Co-Director of Infrastructure and Development Do you know what is significant about tomorrow, July 20, 2024? Those familiar with Octavia Butler and her incredibly visionary novel – Parable of…

Luma Kennedy – NCJN Communications Manager Robeson County, which is both the largest county in North Carolina, and has the largest indigenous population and a significant Black community, is also…