Summit 2007: Diverse Partners for Environmental Progress
October 7 - 10, 2007, Charlotte, NC www.partnersforenvironmentalprogress.org
History
Summit 2007 grew from the historic conversation that began in October 2005 at the first national environmental summit held in Wakefield, Virginia. More than 90 leaders from environmental justice, public health, conservation, faith-based and community organizations came together to address the challenges of working together across racial and other barriers and to begin to heal some of the misunderstandings of the past.
Following that event, two regional roundtables were held in Washington, DC and Oakland, California to continue the conversation and begin preparations for the next summit. (A third roundtable is scheduled for Albuquerque, New Mexico in August 2007.) Overall these conversations have enabled us to tell a different story and drop the old paradigm of how we cannot work together for a new one, which explains why we will continue to form new ties and solidify the relationships among disparate groups. It is the only way we will be successful in safeguarding our planet and its people.
Why Now?
Why is Summit 2007 happening? We believe that people really want something new and that they are ready and willing to take the first steps toward the possibility of change. We also believe that if they are given the time and space to act authentically change will occur. Those who are committed to the environment are eager to create a diverse and powerful community of advocates. Our intent is to continue to convene these summits and follow-up roundtables until they are no longer needed-until we can speak out with one voice for a better world.
Summit 2007 Objectives
- To agree on and formalize principles and actions for continuing progress in building a committed, diverse community of environmental advocates
- To incorporate the voices of America’s youth into the critical discussions
- To honor and learn from colleagues who have demonstrated successful partnership principles
- To build a living document that will create a new pattern for environmental cooperation and partnerships
- To develop opportunities to strengthen our network and relationships through capacity building and fund-raising
Who should participate?
Leaders from the environmental justice, traditional and non-traditional environmental, public health, faith, civil rights, environmental education, parks and recreation, and conservation fields as well as those who are involved with funding to improve the environment for all communities.
Contact:
Iantha Gantt-Wright
The Kenian Group Diversity Consultants
938 Swan Creek Road #208
Fort Washington, MD 20744
igwright@earthlink.com
(301) 292-6677
Diversity in the Environment for the Next Generation: A Call to Action
We are in a crucial yet opportunistic time in the history of the environmental movement. Discussions and awareness of diversity issues continue to surface, and many in the baby boomer generation are expected to retire soon. The timing is ideal for the next generation to provide the leadership that is badly needed in moving diversity issues forward. This strategy session was aimed at creating a forum so a select group of emerging leaders could discuss and better understand how diversity issues affect the environmental movement and to strategize ways to improve the situation. The session brought together a small, diverse set of leaders early in their professional careers from a broad spectrum of organizations, academic institutions, foundations, businesses, and agencies. (Click here to read about the session participants.)
In order for the environmental movement to make substantial progress on diversity issues and to provide a more inclusive culture, the participants recommend the following:
- Local and national venues where open honest dialogue about diversity issues in the environmental field can occur on a regular basis need to be created.
- Support networks for people of color and people who support diversity issues need to be created, available and accessible.
- More diversity and anti-racism training needs to occur across the environmental movement, especially among the current leaders.
- New models of leadership (including shared leadership models) need to be developed, encouraged, and funded.
- Most importantly, environmental foundations and other funding sources need to make diversity a priority in their grantmaking programs (i.e., provide substantial funds for diversity work.)
For more information on the workshop click here >>>
Contact:
Marcelo Bonta
Center for Diversity & the Environment
2575 NW Robinia Lane
Portland, OR 97229
mbonta@environmentaldiversity.org
NATIONAL SUMMIT ON DIVERSITY IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL FIELD: Thirty-five Years After Earth Day... Where Do We Go From Here
http://sitemaker.umich.edu/meldi
Sponsored by the Minority Environmental Leadership Development Initiative (MELDI)
University of Michigan’s School of Natural Resources and Environment
The Minority Environmental Leadership Development Initiative (http://www.umich.edu/~meldi/) held a National Summit on Diversity in the Environmental Field on August 28-30, 2005 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It brought together students, leaders of environmental nonprofits, faculty in environmental programs, leaders of government environmental agencies, and representatives from other environmental institutions to discuss the state of diversity in the environmental field and strategize about how to enhance it in the future. This conference was driven by concrete data collected from pipeline studies exploring the demographic characteristics of academic environmental programs, the characteristics of the environmental organizations, and the nature of the work experience in these organizations. The conference also focused on examining successful techniques of introducing and implementing diversity practices in the workplace. The goal of the conference was to help move the conversation about diversity in the environmental field into the 21st century.
Summit 2005: Diverse Partners for Environmental Progress
This historic conversation among leaders, advocates and others active in the conservation, environmental justice, health, civil rights, public lands and funding communities will be convened to explore issues linked to our living environment, and to strengthen the network of environmental advocates that is reflective of race, ethnicity, culture, class and geography.
Summit Objectives
- To connect leaders in the mainstream environmental segment, the environmental justice, health, civil rights, public lands and other interested parties in developing a framework to support a pro-environment slate of issues.
- To engage in a full day of facilitated dialogue that examines the real and/or perceived barriers and constraints that have served as obstacles to moving forward together.
- To determine the most pressing and cross-cutting issues on which we can commit to work together.To form a network of diverse parties interested in communicating beyond the summit and developing a strategy to sustain the conversations and action steps developed.
- To identify at least one other “next step” everyone is willing to take together, in light of the current political climate, that supports these goals.
Contact:
Iantha Gantt-Wright
The Kenian Group Diversity Consultants
938 Swan Creek Road #208
Fort Washington, MD 20744
igwright@earthlink.com
(301) 292-6677