The New York City Environmental Justice Alliance (NYC-EJA) is a network of community-based groups in low-income neighborhoods of color throughout NYC. Founded in 1991, NYC-EJA organizes its member groups to advocate for the empowerment of environmentally overburdened communities by coalescing around City & State-wide issues which threaten their ability to thrive. What distinguishes NYC-EJA is our ability to: a) Create, nurture & organize a collective voice to mobilize citywide support to resolve environmental justice issues. b) Highlight key environmental justice issues & policies that arise in multiple communities, or impact citywide conditions, requiring innovative & creative problem solving. c) Involve people of color & other stakeholders directly affected by environmental issues in leadership roles For 30+ years, NYC-EJA has been at the forefront of City & State campaigns to advance environmental & climate justice. Our recent campaign accomplishments have re-defined environmental/climate justice advocacy in NY – our leadership has included: * the Waterfront Justice Project, (NYC’s first citywide community resiliency campaign) * the Sandy Regional Assembly, * the historic 2014 People’s Climate March (the largest climate mobilization in history, with over 400,000 marchers), * NYC’s first “waste equity” law (reduced waste transfer station capacity in NYC's most overburdened communities), * Transform Don’t Trash NY (the largest proposal to overhaul NYC’s commercial waste system in decades), * Climate Works for All (won the 2019 NYC Climate Mobilization Act, the most ambitious climate action plan by any major U.S. city), * NY Renews (lead for the Climate Leadership & Community Protection Act, CLCPA, the most aggressive climate action law among U.S. states - inspired President Biden's Justice40 Initiative), * congestion pricing for NYC’s central business district (the first by any North American city); and * the NYC Climate Justice Agenda.
