HTML PLAIN TEXT COPY <h1>Meet 5 people bringing equity to the fight against climate change</h1> <p> <em>"This story was originally published by <a href="https://grist.org" title="Grist">Grist</a>. Sign up for Grist's <a href="https://go.grist.org/signup/weekly/partner?utm_campaign=republish-content&utm_medium=syndication&utm_source=partner" title="Weekly newsletter">weekly newsletter here</a>."</em> </p> <p>Climate change doesn’t discriminate, but systems created by people do. Policies and other decisions put some closer to the frontlines of disaster than others: communities of color <a href="https://grist.org/article/best-climate-scenario-is-still-too-hot-for-many-communities-of-color/">breathe more toxic fumes</a>, people with disabilities have <a href="https://grist.org/article/in-natural-disasters-a-disability-can-be-a-death-sentence/">no easy way out</a> of increasingly common natural disasters, and women and children are <a href="https://grist.org/article/addressing-climate-change-is-good-for-women-and-their-wallets/">at a higher risk</a> of dying from the effects of climate change.</p> <p>But it’s not all doom and gloom. Every year, Grist compiles a list of emerging leaders — the Grist 50 — working toward a sustainable, equitable future. Meet five environmental justice advocates from <a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/">this year’s list</a> who are challenging those biased systems, righting wrongs, and ensuring that marginalized communities are at the center of climate solutions.</p> <ol class="block"> <li>In Charlotte, Sol Nation founder <a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/#nakisa-glover"><strong>Nakisa Glover</strong></a> turns community members’ art and conversation into on-the-ground change.</li> <li>Huron, California, Mayor <a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/#rey-leon"><strong>Rey León </strong></a>builds new green infrastructure in his rural, predominantly Latino farming town.</li> <li>17-year-old <a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/#elsa-mengistu"><strong>Elsa Mengistu</strong></a> works with youth climate movement Zero Hour to center marginalized youth voices — after all, they’ve got the biggest stake in the fate of the planet.</li> <li>Like the Green New Deal? You’ll love <a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/#adrien-salazar"><strong>Adrien Salazar</strong></a>’s even more progressive plan for New York, which would direct state funds toward neighborhoods that need it most.</li> <li><a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/#rev-mariama-white-hammond"><strong>Rev. Mariama White-Hammond</strong></a> opened her own church in Boston to foster connection between communities, in the environmental justice movement and beyond.</li> </ol> <p>Excited about the future? <a href="https://grist.org/grist-50/2019/">There’s more where that came from</a>.</p> <p>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://grist.org/">Grist</a> at <a href="https://grist.org/fix/article/meet-5-people-bringing-equity-to-the-fight-against-climate-change/">https://grist.org/fix/article/meet-5-people-bringing-equity-to-the-fight-against-climate-change/</a>.</p> <link href="https://grist.org/fix/article/meet-5-people-bringing-equity-to-the-fight-against-climate-change/" rel="canonical"/> <p>Grist is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. Learn more at <a href="https://grist.org/">Grist.org</a></p> <script id="grist-syndication-pixel" async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id=" data-source="repub" data-canonical="https://grist.org/fix/article/meet-5-people-bringing-equity-to-the-fight-against-climate-change/" data-title="Meet 5 people bringing equity to the fight against climate change" crossorigin="anonymous"/>