Justice40: A Time for Righteous Investment

What is Justice40?

A federal initiative through the Biden Administration with the goal of 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal investments flows to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution.

Who distributes the money?

Federal agencies are working on releasing "covered programs," which are Federal programs that make covered investments in any one of the following seven categories. Funding will come through federal agencies via covered programs.

Who can apply?

Funding will be available to community organizations and local governments.

What types of investments qualify?

Investments must fall into one of the following categories:

  • Climate change,

  • clean energy and energy efficiency,

  • clean transit,

  • affordable and sustainable housing,

  • training and workforce development,

  • remediation and reduction of legacy pollution, and

  • the development of critical clean water and wastewater infrastructure

What is DRCC’s role in Justice40 implementation?

DRCC is a Regional Hub! Deep South Center for Environmental Justice and the Bullard Center organized 21 Regional Hubs in 10 U.S. states that will be managed by leaders of community-based organizations. Both organizations will continue their collaborative work on the equitable implementation of Justice40 as they convene leaders of the Justice40 Regional Hubs in New Orleans and Houston for education and research skills training. 

As a hub, DRCC will be working with 10 local organizations to share training and resources on applying for grants, using mapping tools to tell community stories, and developing community projects.

“The goal of this…is to empower our hub leaders to pursue and advocate for federal dollars that can improve environmental conditions and address climate risks in their communities. For over 30 years, we’ve witnessed projects and funding intended to benefit our communities never reach them. Our Justice40 work has been designed with that history in mind so that our community-based organizations can advocate with authority, equipped with the tools necessary to successfully secure Justice40-mandated funding and resources that will have a lasting impact on their communities.”  said Dr. Beverly Wright, Founder & Executive Director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice. 

Want to learn more about joining DRCC’s Regional Hub?

Justice 40rward Community Tour

On May 6th, DRCC co-hosted a Justice 40rward Community Tour and Briefing with WE ACT for Environmental Justice. The tours are designed to optimize the potential of Justice40 and connect frontline communities like ours directly with Agency staff and members of the Biden Administration to lay the groundwork for critical investments to come to our communities.

Local officials from the Port of Seattle, City Council, and representatives from the offices of the U.S. Senate and U.S. The House of Representatives and the met with local organizations, and members of local government including the City, County, State. We were also thrilled to host environmental justice activist and Senior Advisor to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Robin Morris Collin, and representatives from other federal agencies including Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development. We shared a full day together including DRCC leading a “toxic boat tour’ along our Duwamish River.

This event was a great opportunity to discuss Environmental Justice community priorities and future investments. We hope that this convening will be the first of many collaborative efforts with the community and local, state, and federal leadership as we work to secure funding for community-led projects and infrastructure updates. DRCC continues to advocate for implementing meaningful change to support the policies that will end harmful pollution and the disproportionate impacts that our communities face as a result of historic disinvestment.

Photos courtesy of WE ACT for Environmental Justice