I had never heard of the Philadelphia Art Commission back in 2022 when I tuned in to a Zoom meeting about plans to build a driving range at the Cobbs Creek Golf Course. When reporting on a public meeting of a City commission, it’s not uncommon to find yourself waiting impatiently through all the other
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Three years after its launch, the Philadelphia Environmental Justice Advisory Commission (PEJAC) has yet to assert itself as an impactful player in efforts to ensure that all Philadelphians live free from environmental toxins and hazards. One year into Cherelle Parker’s mayorship, the commission has been absent from the administration’s Office of Clean and Green Initiatives.
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Jennifer Skirkanich updated her kitchen exhaust fan after an air quality monitor reminded her just how dangerous cooking can be. “You don’t ever think about it, but seeing the light turn red is like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s harmful,’” says Skirkanich, a biologist and West Philadelphia resident who teaches at Bryn Mawr College. Skirkanich’s air quality
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On a chilly night in February, a group of young people gathered on the steps of City Hall, armed with hand-painted artwork, prepared speeches, chants and community speakers; the Philly Thrive interns had organized a press conference to support housing justice in Grays Ferry. They were calling on City Council to support affordable housing legislation
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When shootings skyrocketed in Philadelphia during the pandemic, teenagers were among those most affected. In the face of this crisis, students at Dobbins Technical High School in North Philly set out to unearth the root causes of the violence sweeping the city. “Future Visions” is the result — an enormously affecting documentary series that follows
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On a drive through Tacony Creek Park in the spring of 2020, Lawncrest resident Dallas Herbert Sr. could barely get around illegally-dumped construction debris and tires. He was appalled. An executive board member of the Lawncrest Community Association, Herbert asked his older neighbors about this particularly trashed stretch called Snake Road; many informed him that
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At the Overbrook Environmental Education Center (OEEC), we know how hard it is to run an equity-centered community-based organization. In 2019, the acre of land on Lancaster Ave that the OEEC acquired to make into a green oasis was analyzed for volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), metals and more. We knew the
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For years, the residents of Edmonston, Maryland, had needed help. Situated just outside Washington, D.C., the town of about 1,500 people, primarily Hispanic and Black, had flooded for four years in a row in the late 2000s. The issue wasn’t overflow from the Anacostia River that bisects the municipality, but rather its outdated and ineffective
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Running a grassroots environmental justice organization can be difficult, but you don’t have to do it alone. Here are ten resources for groups looking to build their efforts and connect with wider networks. The Bullard Center for Environmental and Climate Justice at Texas Southern University offers training for students and community leaders, conducts community-based participatory
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As a child, Jerome Shabazz saw his father transform a vacant lot into a neighborhood garden that produced enough fresh fruit and vegetables to feed their whole North Philadelphia block. “It was just incredible,” says Shabazz, now the executive director of Overbrook Environmental Education Center, located at 6134 Lancaster Avenue in West Philly. Through his
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