Bridging Communities with Hope: An Environmental Justice Conference for All
September 17 – 18, 2025
CEJM Valdosta Project Collaborator Kelley Saxon discusses impact of extreme weather events on her community.CEJM Storytellers Melissa Williams (Shiloh, Ala) and Makayla Ross(Valdosta, GA)The Rev. Mariama White-Hammond with fellow panelists Crystal Johnson, MA EEA Asst Secretary of Environmental Justice,Dr. Meghan Kallman, Rhode Island State Senator and UMB Professor and former EPA Regional Administrator Daniel BlackmanThe Rev. Ben Chavis has been at the forefront of the fight for civil rights and environmental justice for more than half a century. Former EPA Regional Administrator David Cash talks to conference attendees. CEJM Fellow and LOE Producer Nana Mohammed meets Dr. Ben Chavis.Attorney Monique Harden shares her views on the EJ & the Law Panel Discussion while Britteny Jenkins and David Cash listenAttorney Monique Harden, former assistant director of Law and Policy and the Community Engagement Program Manager at the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, meets Kelley Saxon, of CEJM’s Valdosta project. The Rev. Timothy Williams discussing the battle to remedy flooding caused by the widening of Highway 84 near his home in Shiloh, Alabama. His community has fought to get the Alabama Department of Transportation to make his community whole. Dr. Robert Bullard, father of the environmental justice movement, discusses challenges facing environmental justice communities during a fireside chat with LOE’s Steve Curwood.eU Mass SFE Dean Carol Thornber greets attendees at the start of the two-day conferenceShiloh’s Rev. Timothy Williams, Dr. Robert Bullard, CEJM Storyteller Melissa Williams, and Rev. Ben Chavis
Hosted at UMass Boston by the Center for Climate and Environmental Justice Media, a collaboration between Living on Earth and UMass Boston School for the Environment
Members of the Shiloh, Alabama, community fight for their quality of life after the state expands a nearby highway, causing disruptive flooding to their property.
Shiloh property owner Page Jones talks to Melissa Williams about the problems caused by flooding from Highway 84 while her longtime friend Aretha Wright listens.Melissa Williams listens to audio from her interview with Bama FlowersTimothy Williams, his daughter Melissa, Robert Bullard and Willie Horstead Jr travelled to Washington to lobby federal officials to help Shiloh resident. Timothy Williams and his four daughtersTim Williams, Robert Bullard and Willie Horstead Jr. awaiting Sec Peter Buttigieg’s visit March 2024Aretha Wright was forced to live with a friend after Highway 84 flooding damaged her home. Flowers points to where the flooding is damaging his Shiloh property.Since Highway 84 was widened the roadway sits elevated adjacent to the Shiloh community. After heavy downpours, torrents of water flood nearby homes next to the eastbound lanes. Willie Horstead Jr. talks to Melissa Williams about his flooding troublesShiloh property owner Page Jones talks about flooding impacts.Aretha Wright speaks as her friend Page Jones listens.
