News You Can Use: Climate Justice: Creating Sustainability Programming with EDI in Mind

As our world continues to grapple with the reality of climate change as well as the challenge of creating a more just and equitable future for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), how can libraries lead change within their own communities? In this panel discussion, we will hear from three librarians who have created innovative programming focused on climate change with equity, diversity, and inclusion as a central part of the discussion. Milwaukee (WI) Public Library led an initiative to connect residents in under-resourced neighborhoods to home vegetable gardening by providing them with materials, installation assistance, and ongoing support and learning opportunities. Evanston (IL) Public Library created virtual programming to teach Spanish speakers about climate change and hosted a hands-on virtual workshop to train domestic workers on handling store-bought cleaning products and their rights when working with potentially dangerous chemicals. Racine (WI) Public Library organized climate change action talks with and for local Black and Latinx residents to purposefully include voices in the conversation that historically were not prioritized in discussions of climate change. This panel will be moderated by Mia Henry, Founder and CEO of Freedom Lifted, whose work as an educator, facilitator, and strategist helps leaders and groups live into their social justice values. Attendees of this panel discussion will leave with ideas and advice to foster these important dialogues in their own libraries.