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People, Equity, and the Environment

This LC helps students develop the skills they need to thoughtfully critique and improve the relationship between people and the planet, with a focus on deep-seated, systemic challenges. Emphasis is placed on the interplay among the environment, systemic social issues, and the emerging environmental justice movement.

On This Page

    For more information about events and to receive emails and other updates from the People, Equity, and the Environment  Learning Community, visit the group page on YaleConnect. Join this Community (YaleConnect)

    Sarah Charlop-Powers receiving the Prospect Street Award

    Preserving and Restoring Urban Forests

    Sarah Charlop-Powers ’09 MEM is helping to preserve and restore critical urban forests in New York City and beyond. In 2012, she helped launch the Natural Areas Conservancy (NAC), which has partnered with NYC Parks to create the innovative Forest Management Framework that conducted field-based ecological assessments in the city. Its efforts recently expanded with a national survey distributed to 125 cities and organizations across the U.S. aimed at gaining a better understanding of how urban forests and natural areas are being managed.

    People, Equity, and the Environment in the News

    Protestors carrying signs in Warren County, North Carolina, 1982
    News

    Where Does the Money Go in Environmental Grantmaking?

    A new study by the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Sustainability Initiative (JEDSI) at the Yale School of the Environment examined nearly $5 billion in grants awarded by 220 foundations in 35  states and found that several of the largest mainstream environmental organizations received more funding individually than all the environmental justice organizations combined.

    Martin Luther King
    News

    Nyeema C. Harris Honors MLK Jr.’s Legacy of Ecosystem Engineering

    In an address held at YSE on Monday, January 23, Nyeema C. Harris, Knobloch Family Associate Professor of Wildlife and Land Conservation, paid tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of impactful systems change using the principals of ecology as an analogy.

    Pat Gonzales
    News

    YSE Lecturer Pat Gonzales-Rogers Discusses Challenges Tribal Nations Face in Conservation and Co-Management of Land

    How to balance shared stewardship, co-management, and tribal sovereignty to protect and sustain more than 100 million acres of Indigenous lands in the U.S.  is a fundamental question in conservation. Pat Gonzales-Rogers, a former director and current consultant for the Bears Ears Coalition, has brought his deep experience on these issues to the Yale School of the Environment this year. 

    Related Centers, Programs, and Initiatives

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    Centers & Programs

    Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Sustainability Initiative (JEDSI)

    Examining the relationship between social inequalities, lived experiences, and environmental outcomes, JEDSI focuses research, teaching, and practice on our environmental history, diverse voices in the environmental movement, and better pathways forward.

    Centers & Programs

    Yale Center for Environmental Justice

    Developing tools, networks, and interdisciplinary research, the Center for Environmental Justice empowers frontline communities to lead the charge for environmental justice at the local, national, and global level.

    Map of every street tree in New Haven
    Centers & Programs

    Urban Resources Initiative (URI)

    Making New Haven more resilient, URI works with local partners to plant trees, restore community green spaces, and build bioswales to filter stormwater runoff.

    Fmers learning techniques to use silvopastoral systems
    Centers & Programs

    Environmental Leadership Training Initiative (ELTI)

    In critical natural landscapes rich in biodiversity, ELTI empowers local leaders to design and implement land use practices and initiatives that protect tropical forests and the livelihoods of local landowners and their communities.

    Participants in a 2022 TFD visit a facility in Finland
    Centers & Programs

    The Forests Dialogue (TFD)

    The Forests Dialogue provides a platform for ongoing, multi-stakeholder conversations focused on collaborative solutions to challenges in achieving sustainable forest management and forest conservation.

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    Centers & Programs

    Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology (FORE)

    Inspiring people to preserve, protect, and restore the Earth community, the Forum on Religion and Ecology takes an international, multi-faith approach to contributing to environmental solutions.

    County-level map of climate opinions
    Centers & Programs

    Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (YPCCC)

    YPCCC is a leader in climate change communication, tracking Americans’ perception of climate change at all scales and building public and political will for climate action.

    Green walkway in urban development
    Centers & Programs

    Hixon Center for Urban Ecology

    The Hixon Center provides an interdisciplinary forum for research, teaching, and outreach that improve our understanding and management of urban environmental systems.

    Centers & Programs

    SEARCH Center: Solutions for Energy, Air, Climate, and Health

    At the nexus of energy and public health, the SEARCH Center utilizes cutting-edge scientific research and technology to support the EPA’s strategic goals of protecting human health and the environment.

    Degree Programs

    YSE's learning communities span across all master's and doctoral degree programs.

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    Learning Communities

    YSE's Learning Communities were created to offer robust interdisciplinary experiences and networks. Students may engage with as many learning communities as they choose, regardless of their degree program or specialization.