S4, E3: Climate Justice = Racial Justice
Climate Justice = Racial Justice
Thursday 29th April 2021
Alexandra Wanjiku Kelbert from Ithaca College and Warwick University discussed how our calls for climate justice will only make progress when we recognise its interconnectedness with the need for social, racial and gender justice.
Climate change is not a neutral force. It’s shaped by centuries of colonialism, extractive capitalism and racial inequality. The communities suffering most from climate breakdown are those who contributed least to causing it — Indigenous peoples, communities in the Global South and marginalised groups who have historically been exploited for resources and labour.
Climate justice means acknowledging these histories and power structures. It means centering the voices of those most affected, redistributing resources and challenging the systems that created both climate breakdown and racial injustice. You cannot solve one without addressing the other.
Alexandra, whose research focuses on the intersections of poverty, race and gender, brought her expertise as an academic, researcher and activist in Black Lives Matter UK to explore why intersectionality is essential to climate action.
Our guests:
- Alexandra Wanjiku Kelbert - Academic, researcher and activist
- Richard Elliott - Pickwell Foundation (host)
