The Environmental Justice Lab

The Environmental Justice Lab

Since the dawn of human history, the fight for environmental justice has always been a fight. Water wars between the people of Israel and herdsmen of Gerar in the book of Genesis, Chapter 26. The resistance of Native Americans to the pillaging of their land and resources at the founding of the United States of America. The refusal to allow a hazardous landfill to be built in the Warren County, a predominantly Black community in North Carolina, giving birth to the modern-day environmental justice movement. The struggle for clean water in places like Flint, MI and Newark, NJ and Jackson, MS. The struggle is real and the fight is on-going. And I'm here for it. My name is Dr. Lesley Joseph, a professor, an environmental engineer, and a fighter for environmental justice in our present day. Every other Tuesday, on this podcast, I explore issues related to environmental justice and the ways in which communities of color are impacted. Each episode will discuss a important environmental justice issue or situation and what we can do to fight for change. Let's learn, grow, and fight for a better world together! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-environmental-justice-lab--5583745/support.

Episodes

Pollution, Power, & the Price of Telling the Truth: The Stunning Resignation of Kimberly Terrell of the Tulane Environ. Law Clinic

June 24, 2025 • 35 mins
In this episode of The Environmental Justice Lab, our host, Dr. Lesley Joseph, responds to a deeply troubling development: the resignation of Dr. Kimberly Terrell from the Environmental Law Clinic at Tulane University. A respected environmental scientist, researcher, and advocate, Dr. Terrell left her position as the Director for Community Engagement, citing political and donor-driven censorship, after years of research exposing th...
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Where the Trash Goes - and Who It Hurts: Exploring landfilling in South Carolina, the United States, and beyond

June 10, 2025 • 43 mins
In this episode of The Environmental Justice Lab, I break down the findings from my latest research publication, entitied “Race, Class, Gender, and Waste: A Spatial Analysis of Landfill Siting and Intersectional Inequities in South Carolina.” This article is not simply a data-driven study; it is an investigation into how race, gender, income, and geography intersect to determine who ends up living next to the landfills in South Car...
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Unseen Suffering: The Mental Scars of Environmental Injustice

May 14, 2025 • 34 mins
In this episode, we confront a powerful but often overlooked reality: environmental injustice doesn’t just harm our bodies - it harms our minds and breaks our spirits.

As part of Mental Health Awareness Month, this episode sheds light on the hidden emotional toll of living in neglected, polluted, and disaster-prone communities. From climate anxiety to post-traumatic stress, Dr. Joseph explains how the fear, powerlessness, and injust...
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Legacy Environmental Justice, pt. 6 - Reflections and the Road Ahead (The Finale)

April 29, 2025 • 29 mins
In the conclusion to this series, our special guest Savannah Domenech and I take a reflective look back at their deep dive into Rochester’s legacy of environmental injustice. Throughout this series, we explored how Kodak’s rise and fall left deep economic, environmental, and public health scars on the Rochester community. In this episode, Savannah shares personal stories, research insights, and the powerful realization that even li...
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Black Maternal Health Week 2025 – Listening, Learning, and Fighting for Justice

April 15, 2025 • 31 mins
In this personal episode, we recognize Black Maternal Health Week with a reflection on the systemic failures that Black women face during pregnancy and childbirth. Together, we explore the heartbreaking reality that Black women - regardless of income or education - consistently experience the worst maternal health outcomes in the U.S. Why are they not being heard? Why are their concerns dismissed, even by healthcare professionals? ...
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Legacy Environmental Justice, pt. 5 - Economic Impacts of Kodak on the People of Rochester, NY

March 25, 2025 • 29 mins
In this episode,  Savannah Domenech is back to dive into the economic effects of Kodak’s rise and fall in Rochester, New York. For decades, Kodak wasn’t just a company - it was the economic backbone of the city, providing tens of thousands of jobs and shaping the entire community. But when the company went bankrupt, so did the financial security of many Rochester residents.

What happens when an industry that once promised prosperity...
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World Water Day 2025 - The Fight for Water Justice

March 22, 2025 • 20 mins
In this episode, we dive deep into the urgent water crises affecting communities worldwide. Although the United Nations’ theme for World Water Day 2025 highlights glacier preservation, we are shifting the conversation to the pressing issue of water access in war zones, underprivileged communities, and regions suffering from environmental neglect.

From Gaza to Flint, Sudan to Ukraine, billions are struggling to secure clean, safe wat...
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Legacy Environmental Justice, pt. 4 - Health Impacts of Kodak on the People of Rochester, NY

March 11, 2025 • 44 mins
In this episode, we confront one of the most devastating consequences of Kodak’s industrial legacy: its impact on public health. For decades, the communities surrounding Kodak’s operations in Rochester have faced alarming health disparities—rising cancer rates, respiratory illnesses, and other chronic conditions linked to toxic pollution. Savannah unpacks the harsh reality of how environmental contamination has disproportionately a...
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Legacy Environmental Justice, pt. 3 - Environmental Impacts of Kodak on the People of Rochester, NY

February 25, 2025 • 63 mins
In this continuation of our series on Legacy Environmental Justice, we shift our focus from Kodak to the people of Rochester - the communities that lived in the shadow of the factory, bore the brunt of its pollution, and are still dealing with its lasting effects today. Savannah unpacks eye-opening statistics from the latest census, revealing how economic hardship, failing school systems, and environmental degradation have shaped t...
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Legacy Environmental Justice, pt. 2 - The Kodak Facility in Rochester, NY

February 11, 2025 • 43 mins
In this episode, we welcome back Savannah Domenech for a deep dive into the rise and fall of Kodak— and the lasting environmental and social impacts on Rochester, New York. Once a corporate giant that defined photography for generations, Kodak was more than just a company — it was the backbone of an entire community. Savannah unpacks Kodak’s golden era, its contributions to Rochester, and how it became synonymous with job security ...
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An Introduction to Legacy Environmental Justice with Savannah Domenech

January 20, 2025 • 34 mins
For many, fighting for environmental justice means pushing polluters to stop poisoning our air and water. It means shutting down non-compliant factories and industrial facilities that refuse to follow the law. However, environmental justice issues can persist long after these facilities shut down or stop polluting. It's called "legacy environmental (in)justice", where the pollution of the past continues to impact our present. Not m...
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Welcome to Season 4 of the Environmental Justice Lab!

January 18, 2025 • 12 mins
Happy New Year and welcome to Season 4 of the Environmental Justice Lab. We have a lot of amazing stories and analysis planned for this season. From thinking through the implications of a new president in the United States for EJ work to examining topics like legacy environmental justice to lifting up marginalized voices around the world, we are going to be getting deep this year. Stay with us! Connect with us! And support us!

Conne...
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Engineering Environmental Justice in Palestine - A Conversation with the El-Sayeghs, pt. 1

November 29, 2024 • 52 mins
It's the holiday season, and we are coming to the end of another amazing season of the Environmental Justice Lab Podcast. And to finish the year strong, we have a 2-part conversation with the El-Sayeghs. They are a dynamic father-daughter duo of Palestinian engineers who care deeply about environmental justice and equity. I hope you enjoy these episodes as much as I enjoyed recording them. 

So let's get into Part 1 of my conversatio...
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Environmental Apartheid, pt. 3 - Infrastructure Apartheid, explained

November 21, 2024 • 41 mins
We are talking about infrastructure apartheid. Infrastructure can play an important role in social inclusion and economic growth. However, when infrastructure is inadequate, it can lead to social exclusion, poverty, and poor health. The fact that some people in some places have more better, more resilient, more effective infrastructure than others is not an accident. Decisions are being made that keep people from enjoying the quali...
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Environmental Apartheid, pt. 2 - Food Apartheid, explained (pt. 3)

November 1, 2024 • 36 mins
We are (still) talking about food apartheid. While the United Nations has the goal of a world free from hunger by 2030, the reality is that because of these inequitable food systems, we are far from that goal. From conflict to climate change, there is a lot that is keeping us from living in a hunger-free world. 

So let’s get into it on this episode of the Environmental Justice Lab. 

Resources:
Food Apartheid - ReGeneration.
Food Aparth...
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Environmental Apartheid, pt. 2 - Food Apartheid, explained (cont.)

October 9, 2024 • 36 mins
We are still talking about food apartheid. The fact that some people in some places have more food choices that they need, while others have no good food choices at all. And on this episode, we are focusing on how food apartheid shows itself in the United States. Trust me, it’s not an accident. People are making decisions that keep healthy foods in some neighborhoods and keeps them out of other neighborhoods. It’s not right.

So let’...
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Environmental Apartheid, pt. 2 - Food Apartheid, explained

September 11, 2024 • 34 mins
We are talking about food apartheid. The fact that some people in some places have more food choices that they need, while others have no good food choices at all. And it’s not an accident. Decisions are being made that keep healthy foods in some neighborhoods and keeps them out of other neighborhoods. It’s not right.

So let’s get into it on this episode of the Environmental Justice Lab. 

Resources:
Food Apartheid: Racialized Access ...
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Waste Colonialism, pt. 1 - Plastic and the US (Presented by Co-host Sunny Chen)

July 21, 2024 • 11 mins
Since the early 20th century, plastic has been around and has dominated US consumerism. Unfortunately, it hurts the planet in all phases of its life cycle– from when it’s produced (emitting greenhouse gases), to when it’s used (releasing microplastics), to when it’s discarded (rotting in landfills). That being said, everyone knows its negative impact on the environment, but nothing major has been done to reduce this planet-destroyi...
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Environmental Apartheid, pt. 1 - Climate Apartheid, explained

July 12, 2024 • 28 mins
Climate Apartheid. This phrase, coined by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, describes the ways in which the wealthy and well-connected insulate themselves from the impacts of climate change, while the rest of are left to suffer from them. This two-tiered way of dealing with climate change leaves the vulnerable behind and creates a world where there are two different climate realities. We have to work to identify and dismantle climate aparth...
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What is Environmental Apartheid?

June 22, 2024 • 41 mins
Apartheid. It’s not a word that you can just throw around. When it’s used, it suggests a systematic, deliberate, intentional effort to subjugate and oppress another group with full governmental support. It started in South Africa. It was present in the United States of America. It’s happening now to Palestinians. And now it’s happening to our environment.

It’s called “Environmental Apartheid”. And we need to call it out. Name it. Di...
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