The Intersections of Racial and Climate Justice

This unit was created by the Education for Libreration team as part of the 2023 cohort of The 1619 Project Education Network. It is designed for facilitation across approximately three weeks

Objectives

At the completion of this unit, students will be able to… 

• Understand the meaning of industrialization and capitalism, its historical context and current effects on society. 
• Critically analyze systems of food inequity and redlining through the lenses of The 1619 Project essays “Sugar” by Khalil Gibran Muhammad and “Traffic” by Kevin Kruse.
• Explore the stories of current BIPOC climate activists and their contributions to the movement. 
• Reflect on how climate crises and historical injustices have impacted their own neighborhoods and communities.

Unit Overview

In this unit, students will analyze  the historical context that has led to the current climate crisis. Students will engage with contextual pieces that include industrialization and capitalism, redlining and food deserts, and systemic climate injustice. Students will explore resources first through the themes and guiding questions presented in The 1619 Project to understand how systems of capitalism, sugar production, and redlining have led to  injustices today. Students will also begin to study Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color (BIPOC) climate justice activists who have contributed to the climate justice movement. Then students will be able to explore their own neighborhoods and communities and ask critical questions of how these systems of climate justice and injustice have impacted their own lives. 

Important Teaching Note:

Teaching the content mindfully:  (adapted from the Woodburn School District) 

• Create community agreements well in advance of the unit and revisit them before and when needed throughout the unit. 
• Tell students, “These texts may contain information that is triggering or painful. We may experience some productive discomfort.
• It is critical that we take great care of one another and be mindful of others' reactions.
• Pay attention to body language and give each other an incredible amount of grace. Prioritize your needs and be mindful of the needs of others.”
• Be mindful of The 1619 Project’s use of language. For example, use the term “enslaved human beings” instead of the term “slaves.”

Performance Task:

Community Mapping Project (Project linked in lesson plans below)

1. In this project students will do the following:
   1. Fill out a community climate justice checklist which indicates what resources students may or may not have in their communities that are connected with the climate. 
   2. Draw out a neighborhood map that includes key places that either help or hurt climate justice in their area. 
   3. Write a letter to a city official advocating for one of the following: 
      1. Food desert solution (more clean, healthy grocery and food options) 
      2. Better education system (clean, safe and community driven libraries/community events) 
      3. Movement of railroads/factories/other industrial things that lead to air pollution
      4. A climate justice issue of your choice that impacts your local community 

Climate Justice Final Project Description [.pdf][.docx] 

Climate Justice Final Project Rubric [.pdf][.docx]

Assessment/Evaluation:

• Educator evaluation of Reading/Documentary assignments throughout the unit
• Climate Activist Profile Assignment 
• Community Mapping Project [.pdf][.docx] 
• Climate mapping rubric [.pdf][.docx]
• In class discussions
  • Rubric for discussion related to The 1619 Project [.pdf][.docx]
• Exit ticket rubrics embedded in each worksheet

Four lessons and a culminating project implemented over three weeks that include pacing, texts, teaching materials, and multimedia resources. Download below, or scroll down to review key resources included in the unit plan.

Unit Resources

Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards 

• Students will respectfully express curiosity about the history and lived experiences of others and will exchange ideas and beliefs in an open-minded way. 
• Students will respond to diversity by building empathy, respect, understanding and connection. 
• Students will examine diversity in social, cultural, political and historical contexts rather than in ways that are superficial or oversimplified.

The following examples reflect the work of students from high school students in Oakland, CA who engaged with this unit in winter 2023.

1. Students started the unit by analyzing the terms "industrialization" and "capitalism." They then explored how these terms connect to three resources from The 1619 Project to analyze the impact of industrialization and capitalism on climate change, and to evaluate which communities are most affected by climate change.

2. Next, students analyze video clips to evaluate definitions of right relationship with the earth and how these clips present challenges/solutions connected to The 1619 Project essays on sugar and traffic. Students used a graphic organizer to note how "right relationship" is outlined in each clip and then to analyze common themes

3. At the end of the unit, students embark on a multi-step community mapping project to analyze what resources they may or may not have in their communities that are connected with the climate. They explore the history of the Native American communities stewarded the land they live on, use several tools to evaluate climate risk in their communities, and analyze primary and secondary sources to identify challenges and solutions in their communities related to climate change. They then apply their analysis to writing a proposal for how a climate change-related challenge facing their communities could be addressed.