On June 12 & 13, 2025 the Environmental Justice & Climate Protection conference met in Valdosta, GA. We laughed, we cried, and we karaoked.

More importantly, we learned about the importance of bearing witness and how that is a powerful force in moving forward.

We heard a panel discussion from the Concerned Citizens of Cook County and from Shannon Gregory, the Satilla Riverkeeper, about the one-two punch of polluting industries and then Hurricane Helene. After listening to these, several of us from Atlanta remarked, “I knew Helene was bad, but now it feels real to me.”

Frank Ski, our keynote, remarked that teachers may teach about the Amazon and climate change, but they haven’t been to the Amazon. We have to get kids to the Amazon to bear witness. And his organization does just that.

But – because we all can’t afford trips to the Amazon – and hopefully – we all don’t have to go 3 weeks without water like our South Georgia friends did – we have to make sure that we lift up and empower the voices that have stories to tell that we need to hear.

Like our friends said, once the power and water went out, there were no more political affiliations or party lines, there was just “you and me and we” in this together.

This reinforced Michael Czajkowski’s misinformation talk. We all just think the other side is evil. And sure maybe a few folks are really evil – but most of the people across the divide are just people – who at the end of the day want a happy family, a safe home, and a healthy environment.

And to bridge the divide we must make it personal. We must bear witness.

Cancer doesn’t just run in your family. It runs in your community. Your zip code impacts your health.

Yes, it is super helpful to gather facts and evidence, so that folks such as Southern Environmental Law Center can sue for compliance and remediation. SELC can’t sue everyone.

It is helpful though that climate change and law suits cost money.

Our health is our wealth.

No one is coming to save us.

We gotta Go APE!

A: Advocate, Advertise, Agitate
P: Petition, Partner,
E: Educate, Engage

How are we going to Bear Witness? 

One – listen first. EcoAction stressed the importance of building relationships and understanding community needs before offering solutions. All successful programs we heard from incorporated community meetings and listening sessions and identifying what the community wants.

Two – work with universities and researchers. Science can help us determine what is in the air, water, and soil. And what we need to do to remediate impacts. And how to prevent future harm.

Three – universities and researchers – work with us to REPORT BACK. Give the evidence back to the people who can use it to make change.

Four – build out community resilience hubs, community gardens, and shared strength. No one is going to save us. Building resilience builds communities and bridges divides. After a disaster, when help does arrive, it is certainly nice to have the local community able to voice their needs, instead of to be told what their needs are.