Environmental Justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, geographic location or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.
The Guide for Citizen Participation (Currently Unavailable) will help you understand state and federal environmental laws, and how you can participate when IDEM proposes changes to environmental rules, or makes decisions regarding issuing permits or conducting cleanup actions. It can also point you to other government agencies that help to protect the environment, and that may have authority over activities which are not regulated by IDEM. IDEM's Guide for Citizen Participation is an integral part of IDEM's continuing Environmental Justice efforts.
These four maps were developed using 2000 U.S. Census data to illustrate areas in Indiana that IDEM has identified as potential areas of Environmental Justice concern based on racial minority, hispanic/latino minority, and income.
To save the files to your computer, simply right-click on the links above with your mouse, and then, on the menu that appears, click on "Save Target As" (for Internet Explorer web browsers) or "Save Link As" (for Netscape web browsers), and navigate to the location on your computer where you'd like to save the file. You may then open the file by double-clicking on the icon where you saved it. Please note that these files will take a great deal of time to download over a dial-up connection.
The Pew Partnership for Civic Change: LeadershipPlenty Program is a training program aimed at strengthening community leadership by equipping citizens to take effective civic action. Selected partner organizations are provided with the LeadershipPlenty Training Program, "train-the-trainer" instruction through an intensive training institute, limited technical assistance with implementation of the program, and involvement with other partners in the LeadershipPlenty Network to refine the program and share strategies. Groups eligible to apply for the program include national organizations with local affiliates, national foundations, community foundations or regional organizations, local community organizations, and universities and colleges. Applications are due December 31, annually.
In Fall 2003, the [EPA] Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) will review applications for the first Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem- Solving (CPS) Grant Program. The purpose of the Environmental Justice CPS Grant Program is for EPA to provide financial assistance to community-based organizations who wish to engage in constructive and collaborative problem-solving by utilizing tools developed by EPA and others to find viable solutions for their community's environmental and/or public health concerns. There will be 15 grants awarded by January 2004. All awards will be in the amount of $100,000.00 to be used over a three-year period. The Environmental Justice CPS Grant Program is managed by Linda K. Smith (Project Officer) and Marva E. King (Program Manager) of the Office of Environmental Justice. For more information, call the toll-free number 1-800-962-6215.
Since 1992, the Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ), at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has sponsored an Intern Program through a cooperative agreement with the Environmental Careers Organization (ECO), a non-profit organization located in Boston. More than 2,000 students from all parts of the U.S., from diverse ethnic backgrounds and all academic levels (undergraduate, graduate and doctoral), have participated in this educational program. The students have received training in challenging science, engineering, management, education and policy-related projects at the EPA. In 2000, OEJ initiated the Community Intern Program through which more than 100 students have experienced environmental protection at the grassroots level. The Community Intern Program is available each year, generously funded by the OEJ.
The National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC) was established September 30, 1993. The functions of the NEJAC cannot be performed within the Agency. This council is the first time that community, academia, industry, environmental, indigenous, and state/local/tribal government groups have been brought together where a dialogue can define to "reinvent" solutions to environmental justice problems. It is essential that such a dialogue occur. In addition, NEJAC provides a valuable forum for integrating environmental justice with other EPA priorities and initiatives. Please visit the NEJAC web page.
A U.S. Government web site that makes it easier for you to participate in rulemaking from EPA and other Federal agencies.
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