From the Office of Legacy Management:
The Third Annual State of Environmental Justice in America Conference will convene May 27–29, 2009, at the Doubletree Hotel in Arlington, Virginia. Leaders from various sectors will engage in three days of free exchange of new ideas and new approaches to environmental justice. This interactive training session will feature voices of experience, research, discussions, and thought-provoking dialogue. The program format will feature needs and challenges of communities, governments, municipalities, tribes, faith-based organizations, and others with an interest in environmental matters and environmental justice. Conference participants will realize informative and productive resources that can support their individual program goals and objectives.
We have invited all members of the Obama administration and Congress who have environmental justice as a portion of their responsibilities, and expect a number of them to participate in the conference.Our specific areas of interest this year are climate change, community benefits and youth involvement. We expect to explore the challenges facing socioeconomically vulnerable communities (including people of color, low-income neighborhoods, and tribal communities) and make recommendations for building resilience to the impactsof climate change. We expect to explore various aspects of environmental activities including supplemental environmental projects and community benefit agreements to discuss how socioeconomically vulnerable communities can use these tools to the greatest degree possible.
We expect to review various youth environmental activities and examine means to increase opportunities for youth involvement to greater degrees and broader venues. All in all, this conference holds great promise for discussion, debate andgrowth in environmental justice.We invite your participation in the conference. Opportunities still exist for new andinnovative ideas and approaches. This conference presents a great opportunity to freely discuss environmental justice concepts with members of Congress and the Obama administration.
Additional conference information or
Contact the Conference Coordinator, John Rosenthall
Sincerely,
David W. Geiser
Deputy Director
Office of Legacy Management
