Environmental Justice
Why

How

Future

Why Environmental Justice Concerns Marin County Residents

Marin County cannot be left behind the United States and the rest of the world in meeting the needs of our growing multicultural communities. Therefore, Marin County cannot leave segments of our population behind. Population projections show an increase in Marin County residents of more than six thousand from 2000 to 2010. The questions that will shape Marin County's future become what kind of communities Marin County residents want to see. How can education strengthen our future workforce? How do we ensure each resident has access to basic needs? Each question finds the beginning of the answer is raising the consciousness about Marin County's challenges and solutions.

The extremity of conditions in Marin City illustrates the disparity existing in many parts of Marin County. For example, there is no supermarket in Marin City, which calls to question the nutritional needs of the community where almost half of the children are living in poverty (source: www.ncccsf.org/map/). Proper nutrition has been strongly correlated with increased cognitive skills and even a reduction in violence. With the closest supermarket being two miles away, reliance on inconsistent public transportation is necessary.

The growing diversity in Marin County schools also presents an area where environmental justice concerns are highlighted. After high school the national college enrollment trends indicate that African-American and Latino-American students enroll in higher education later than their cohorts do and some do not enroll at all. According to the director of the Office of Minorities in Education for the ACE: "The gaps relate to some of the real fundamental social and economic conditions in this country." (source: Number of minorities in college doubles : October 9, 2003). This education gap affects the youth's long-term livelihood and the strength of Marin County's workforce. Besides student retention, it is apparent that low-income youth need paid employment and marketable skills in order to become competitive job candidates.

How EECOM Addresses Environmental Justice Issues

EECOM is already working towards alleviating these needs and linking environmental justice concerns with traditional environmentalism. EECOM is seeking support to expand and maintain the following initiatives, guided by our primary programs and EECOM's overall role throughout Marin County.

  • Ensuring the county's most diverse and underserved regions, Marin City, the Canal, and Novato receive greater environmental education and access to healthful foods. This change is led by EECOM's Marin Food Systems Project (MFSP).
  • Delivering programs to at risk youth to increase their participation in their education and inspire them develop future marketable skills to enter the workforce, if not higher education. EECOM's Teen Environmental Media Network (TEMN) leads this initiative.
  • Educating Marin County residents about environmental justice through our website, newsletter, workshops, and cause-related marketing.
  • Providing a training program for teachers.
  • Working with the Environmental Justice Collaborative Working Group to redefine the meaning of environmental justice in Marin.
Collaborating for the Future

An understanding of environmental justice is necessary for Marin County's future, which is bound to be more ethnically and linguistically diverse than it is today. Working in partnership with others who believe we all have a stake in protecting our habitat and supporting a high quality of life for everyone, EECOM belongs to the Marin Environmental Justice Collaborative (MEJC). The MEJC is a diverse project combining the constituents served by the leadership of organizations such as: the Grassroots Leadership Network, Marin Conservation Corps, Next Generation, Green Collar Works, Marin City Community Services District, ISOJI, Marin Cancer Project, Joy of Learning Center, Environmental Health Go Getters, Asian Advocacy Project, and the Golden Gate Village Residents Council.

To find out more about how these organizations help to forward our collective goals, please follow these links: