Climates of Inequality

Climates of Inequality is a participatory public memory project created by students, educators, and community leaders in over 20 cities across the US and around the world. Local teams work together to activate the histories of “frontline” communities: those who have contributed the least to the climate crisis but bear its heaviest burdens. Their multi-media portraits expose the roots of current environmental injustice, and share generations of frontline communities’ strategies for resistance, resilience, and mitigation. The project promotes future visions for confronting the climate crisis that understand, and undo, past environmental harms. By compiling these histories in an evolving, internationally traveling exhibit with local events at every stop, this project seeks to affirm frontline communities’ work and inspire others to action for climate and environmental justice.

Your community’s story is critical for building global vision and action. Learn how to add your history or bring the project to your city.

Climates of Inequality is a project of the Humanities Action Lab, a coalition of universities led by Rutgers University-Newark working with issue organizations and public spaces to create traveling public projects on the past, present, and future of pressing social issues.

Partners

Charlotte, North Carolina Partners
University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte Teachers Institute Levine Museum of the New South
The Bahamas Partners
University of The Bahamas A Sustainable Grand Bahama: Hurricane Dorian Conference
Mexico City, Mexico Partners
Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana-Cuajimalpa CIUDADania19s
Phoenix, AZ, and the Colorado River Basin Partners
Arizona State University Arizona Historical Society Arizona Historical Society
Magdalena River, Colombia Partners
Universidad de los Andes and Universidad del Rosario Acopesca, Asopein, Asopesarhon, Asapevema, Asopestol, Fuentemar, Famipez, Fepescarmar, and other riverside communities
Durham, NC Partners
Duke University Duke Campus Farm Duke Human Rights Center at the Franklin Humanities Institute Pauli Murray Project and the Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice
Newark, NJ (Building Resistance) Partners
Rutgers University-Newark Ironbound Community Corporation (ICC) Hahne & Co Building Atrium
Greensboro and Princeville, NC Partners
University of North Carolina Greensboro FaithAction International House The Town of Princeville Bennett College
Phoenix, AZ, and the Colorado River Basin Partners
Arizona State University Arizona Historical Society Arizona Historical Society
Twin Cities, Minnesota Partners
University of Minnesota Center for Earth, Energy and Democracy (CEED) Bell Museum
Indianapolis, IN Partners
Indiana University IUPUI Kheprw Institute Indianapolis Public Library-Central Library
Mayagüez, PR Partners
University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Fundación Surfrider Rincón Fundación de Culebra Sandra Farms University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez, General Library
Chicago, IL Partners
University of Illinois at Chicago Alianza Americas Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) Chicago Justice Gallery
Ringwood, NJ Partners
Rutgers University–New Brunswick Department of Landscape Architecture The Turtle Clan of the Ramapough Lunaape Nation Newark Public Library
Springfield, MA Partners
University of Massachusetts, Amherst Neighbor to Neighbor Arise for Social Justice Springfield Climate Justice Coalition
Los Angeles and the Inland Empire, CA Partners
University of California, Riverside East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice Warehouse Worker Resource Center (WWRC) People's Collective for Environmental Justice (PC4EJ) Japanese American National Museum & Riverside Art Museum
Milwaukee, WI Partners
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Peace Garden Project MKE Nurturing Diversity Partners Southeast Asian Educational Development Inc. Milwaukee County Historical Society
Oxnard and San Fernando, CA Partners
California State University, Northridge and University of California, Santa Barbara Padres Pioneros/Parent Pioneers Japanese American National Museum & Riverside Art Museum
New Orleans, LA Partners
University of New Orleans The Louisiana Bucket Brigade Hidden History New Orleans People's Assembly 5 Press Gallery, NOCCA Institute
Miami, FL Partners
Florida International University Catalyst Miami WeCount! Green Library, Florida International University
Providence, RI (Pageacoag) Partners
Brown University Tomaquag Museum URI Feinstein Providence Campus Gallery
New Brunswick, NJ Partners
Rutgers University-New Brunswick Department of History New Labor Zimmerli Art Museum
Philadelphia, PA Partners
University of Pennsylvania Eastwick Friends and Neighbors Coalition John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge
Albany, NY Partners
Skidmore College Sheridan Hollow Alliance for Renewable Energy (SHARE) Stage 1 Gallery
Newark, NJ (Alternative Futures) Partners
The New School Ironbound Community Corporation (ICC)

What’s with this map?

Countries on this map are sized to show their relative CO₂ emissions from energy use from 1850 to 2011. Historical (or “cumulative”) emissions remain relevant because CO₂ can remain in the air for centuries. Europe and the US dominate, having released around half of all the CO₂ ever emitted.

CarbonMap.org by Kiln.digital

In The News

Team

Humanities Action Lab Hub Staff

Liz Sevcenko
Founder and Director
Regina Campbell
Administrative Manager, 2021 - Present
Wilmarie Medina-Cortes
Exhibitions and Program Manager, 2022
Aleia Brown, Ph.D.
Program Manager, 2017-2019
Kristyn Scorsone
Graduate Research Assistant, 2019-2020
Nabeehah Sivanesan
Administrative Manager, 2019-2020
Margie Weinstein
Associate Director, 2017-2021
Raquel Escobar
Public Engagement Manager, 2020-2022
Rafael Osorio
Graduate Research Assistant, 2020
Richard Anderson
Public Programming and Exhibitions Manager, 2020-2022
Sydney Johnson
Graduate Research Assistant, 2020

Advisors

Ana Baptista
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice & Chair of Environmental Policy and Sustainability Management Program
The New School
Tamara Butler
Assistant Professor of Critical Literacies, Department of English and African American & African Studies
Michigan State University
Michelle Garvey
Teaching Specialist in Gender, Women, & Sexuality Studies and Sustainability Studies
University of Minnesota
Maria Lopez-Nuñez
Director of Environmental Justice and Community Development
Ironbound Community Corporation
Neil Maher
Professor, Federated Department of History
New Jersey Institute of Technology and Rutgers University-Newark
Julie K. Maldonado
Director of Research
Livelihoods Knowledge Exchange Network (LiKEN)
Chief Vincent Mann
Turtle Clan of the Ramapough Lenape Nation
Melissa Miles
Environmental Justice Manager
Ironbound Community Corporation
Esme Murdock
Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy
San Diego State University
Suzanne Pierre
UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow
University of California, Berkeley
Rajiv Sicora
Senior Manager of Research and US Programming
The Leap

Funders

Climates of Inequality is made possible by the generous support of Rutgers University’s School of Arts and Sciences-Newark; the Humanities Action Lab’s university partners and their local funders; and Express Newark.