Assignment task:
With the text provided below use in text citations in APA format and include the references at the end of the document and answer, what barriers might you face attempting to achieve environmental justice?
You moved to a small, rural community surrounded by heavy forest ten years ago. You grew up in a rural area and missed the quiet and small community life. When an ad showed up for a social worker in a county human services agency that serves the area, you applied and got the job. About five years ago, you got involved in a local community development group focused on sustainable economic development. Everyone participating in the group believes that eco-tourism could bring needed jobs and funds to the community without endangering the state-owned public forest neighboring the community. The forest was given to the state by a family that had logged the area for years. When it was "logged out" they donated the land to the state as a recreational area. Over the years, private campgrounds have been developed that attract tourists in the summer months. There are kayak and canoe rental companies that are family owned that do great business in the summer and early fall months. The forest has always been used for multiple purposes, however. There are still some small logging operations. At the latest meeting of your group, you hear that the governor of your state favors opening public, state-owned lands for drilling. Increased logging of the forest will have to take place to clear the land for drilling. The governor has announced her intention to start leasing public state forestland to drillers as soon as possible. The next day at work, you mention the plans to your co-workers and your concerns about what this will mean for the community and the existing eco-tourism businesses that are growing (like the canoe and kayak rentals). Your coworkers think the governor has the right idea. The drilling will mean great jobs for their children and grandchildren, and better paying jobs than what are here now. They make comments about newcomers not understanding how hard things have been for their families. Two of the most important roles we can take on to promote environmental justice in the rural context are community educator and community development advocate. Both of these roles could be important to this scenario. As a member of a local community development group, you could propose undertaking some community education events. The focus of the community education should be on providing access to unbiased information about rural community economic development and environmental threats and resources to address potential harm. The sessions on community development should include content on sustainable long-term social and economic development with information on the experiences of other communities that have confronted similar situations. This could require multiple events with different community stakeholders. Providing access to information is empowering and essential to decision-making. For rural people to be able to participate fully in development decisions about their own communities, they need to be on more equal footing with corporate representatives seeking to influence government officials and residents. Seeking unbiased information is critically important, as the jobs vs. environment debate can create severe tensions in small communities. Social workers engaged in pursuing environmental justice can easily find themselves negatively labeled and mistrusted, at-odds with long-time locals in need of work. Families can be divided and these battles are intense. The jobs vs. environment debate often centers on a false dichotomy (as environmental protection and job development can be compatible). However, directly engaging in the debate with clients and community members is not necessary in your efforts to help them. Your community needs information.
Conclusion:
Rural people and communities are often vulnerable to potential environmental harm because they are not just rural, they are "rural-industrial." Small towns and villages around the world are affected by agribusiness and industries with common characteristics. A relatively small number of very large firms - often in agribusiness, petro-chemicals, or energy - operate globally. Their workers are frequently imported laborers (as migrant, seasonal or "guest" workers, or as teams of already-trained workers). The work itself is increasingly industrial in character, producing concentrated activity in particular locations (e.g., where certain types of farms or extraction operations are present). These rural-industrial activities can result in significant pollution and environmental devastation that affects the people, fish, and wildlife in the area. As social workers, we are obligated to work to enhance the well-being of people. Increasingly we recognize that as professionals our focus on person and environment does not simply mean looking at people in relationship to the people and entities with which they interact. More and more, we have come to understand that the natural environments surrounding our clients are as important as the social environments surrounding them; they are interdependent. The well-being of people is highly dependent on the well-being of the surrounding natural environment. Historically, we have defended human rights and advocated for social and economic justice. Increasingly we have to recognize that when environments are devastated by toxins and pollution, when surrounding flora and fauna are suffering, people can also be negatively affected. Social work educators here and abroad are calling us to recognize these linkages and incorporate them into every level of practice. Rural social workers need to heed this call to be truly relevant to the present and future.