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Newest Board Members Bring Environmental Protection and Climate Justice Expertise

As a progressive think tank, our mission is to leverage existing law and influence new policy to better protect people and our planet. To do this, we must understand and respond to the social movements of the day, with one foot immersed in the communities and lands we strive to protect and the other in government process and policy.

Alejandro Camacho, Sekita Grant, and Ajulo Othow are leaders in their respective fields, and they bring critical voices and perspectives to our organization. Among other experiences, they’ve worked with conservation and frontline communities on the West Coast, in Puerto Rico and in the Southeast. As CPR moves into its third decade, their rich set of experiences in and connections to the movements for good, effective governance and social justice are exactly what we need to move the needle of change forward.

Alejandro Camacho is a law professor at the University of California, Irvine, with deep expertise in government and governance, particularly as they relate to natural resources, public lands, pollution control, and land use. He has published numerous articles in leading academic journals and traditional news outlets. He also co-authored Reorganizing Government: A Functional and Dimensional Framework, a guide to good governance with a focus on climate change.

Sekita Grant is a vice president at The Solutions Project, a nonprofit organization that funds initiatives led by women and people of color to address pollution and climate change. In this role, she oversees grantmaking, policy research, and strategic support for more than 100 leaders in frontline communities across the country, including in Puerto Rico. She also teaches on environmental justice at Sacramento State University in California and was previously a Climate Justice Fellow with the Emerson Collective.

Ajulo Othow is founder and CEO of EnerWealth Solutions, a company that develops renewable energy projects that support small farmers and economic development in rural communities. A lawyer and former director at Oxfam America, Othow also serves on the Boards of North Carolina Clean Energy Fund and BOSS (Black Owners of Solar Services). She lives on a small farm in North Carolina that has been in her family for five generations.

Each leader has a demonstrated commitment to environmental protection, governmental reform, and climate justice — issues of utmost importance as CPR works to address the tipped scales of justice which harm the land and disadvantage people of color and low-wealth communities.

I’m heartened that Ajulo and Sekita will join our first-in-while board meeting in person next month and Alex will join formally our board in January. We are excited to work with them as CPR enhances its portfolio of research and advocacy on behalf of all people and the planet.

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Minor Sinclair | July 8, 2021

Newest Board Members Bring Environmental Protection and Climate Justice Expertise

Executive Director Minor Sinclair welcomes three new board members to the Center for Progressive Reform and highlights their diverse, critical voices and perspectives.

Darya Minovi, David Flores | July 7, 2021

President Biden: Take Action Now to Protect the Public from ‘Double Disasters’

Four years ago, Hurricane Harvey slammed into the coast of Texas, causing severe flooding in the Houston area and leading to a loss of electrical power throughout the region. During the blackout, a local chemical plant lost its ability to keep volatile chemicals stored onsite cool, and a secondary disaster ensued: A series of explosions endangered the lives of workers and first responders and spurred mass evacuations of nearby residents. This infamous incident was a classic "double disaster" — a natural disaster, like a storm or earthquake, followed by a technical disaster, like a chemical release or explosion. These events pose a severe and growing threat to public and environmental health — and to workers in particular, who are hurt "first and worst." Hundreds of thousands of Americans have been injured, killed, or forced to shelter in place or evacuate in the wake of such disasters in recent decades, and countless others have been needlessly exposed to toxic pollution. Today, the Center for Progressive Reform published a policy brief with Earthjustice and the Union of Concerned Scientists, which contains recommendations to EPA on how to address this problem.

Dan Rohlf | July 6, 2021

The Pacific Northwest Heat Wave and Climate Change’s ‘New Normal’

While most people around the country were enjoying summer, residents of the Pacific Northwest used to joke about "Junuary" -- the cloudy and often rainy June days before the sun made its relatively brief appearance in the region after the Fourth of July. But as I wrote this post last week in Portland, Oregon -- a city set in a temperate rainforest ecosystem of towering trees and ferns -- it was 116 degrees outside, the third consecutive day over 100 degrees and the second in excess of 110. The only time I've personally experienced a comparable temperature was nearly two decades ago when I visited Death Valley National Park with my family. Now Death Valley had come to me.

James Goodwin | July 6, 2021

Biden White House Can Make the Regulatory System Anti-Racist. Here’s How.

The White House is asking for input on how the federal government can advance equity and better support underserved groups. As a policy analyst who has studied the federal regulatory system for more than a dozen years, I have some answers -- and I submitted them on July 6. My recommendations focus on the White House rulemaking process and offer the Biden administration a comprehensive blueprint for promoting racial justice and equity through agencies’ regulatory decision-making.

Maggie Dewane | July 2, 2021

Declaring Our Independence from Fossil Fuels

How do we declare our independence from fossil fuels? While there isn't a single silver bullet, there are plenty of legislative and federal actions the United States government can, and should, take.

Daniel Farber | July 1, 2021

The Illusions of Takings Law

For the last century, the Supreme Court has tried to operationalize the idea that a government regulation can be so burdensome that it amounts to a seizure of property. In the process, it has created a house of mirrors, a maze in which nothing is as it seems. Rules that appear crisp and clear turn out to be mushy and murky. Judicial rulings that seem to expand the rights of property owners turn out to undermine those rights. The Court's decision last week in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid illustrates both points.

Alina Gonzalez | June 28, 2021

Louisiana Environmental Justice Leader Wins Prestigious Environmental Prize

Environmental justice advocate Sharon Lavigne has won the world's largest prize for environmental advocacy for blocking a chemical giant from building a roughly $1.3 billion plastic manufacturing plant in St. James Parish, Louisiana, a majority-Black community.

Daniel Farber | June 25, 2021

The Regulatory Process: FAQs

Even most lawyers, let alone the rest of the population, are a bit fuzzy on how the regulatory system works. As the Biden administration is gearing up to start a slew of regulatory proceedings, here's what you need to know about the process.

Allison Stevens, Laurie Ristino, Maggie Dewane, Steph Tai, Victor Flatt | June 24, 2021

CPR Scholars Call for ‘Vigilant Advocacy’ to Protect LGBTQ Gains

The Center for Progressive Reform stands with all who are working to advance equity and equality for LGBTQ Americans. To commemorate Pride Month, we asked three CPR leaders to weigh in on progress in this area.