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/Work/Equity Imperative Plan/Environmental Equity

Environmental Equity

Sustainable Communities. Healthy Environments. Brighter Futures. A healthy environment is essential for thriving communities. We are addressing environmental injustices, promoting sustainability, and ensuring all neighborhoods — especially historically marginalized ones—have access to clean air, safe water, and climate-resilient infrastructure.

A focus on environmental justice is critical to addressing disproportionate environmental burdens found in Marion County for specific ZIP Codes and neighborhoods, such as high energy costs, increased levels of pollution, and excessive utility shut-offs. It also includes ensuring that environmental justice initiatives involve addressing historical inequities, such as redlining, by creating equitable access to clean energy, and improving infrastructure, and centering community voice in solutions.

The proportion a household pays toward their gas and electricity bills is both an economic and an environmental concern. High energy burdens — the percentage of income a family used to keep power on — leads some residents to experience “energy poverty,” where they can’t access reliable and affordable energy sources, putting them at risk of going without power for heat, air conditioning, and refrigeration for food and medicines. Indiana residents see excessive utility shut-offs at their home — the third highest rate of any state in the country — and long power outages. These energy burdens overwhelmingly impact communities of color and low-socioeconomic communities, and create additional health burdens.

“ Indiana's utilities shut off electricity to Hoosier households nearly 265,000 times over the last two years — the third most of any state across the country. ”

The Indianapolis Star, 2022

In Indianapolis, Black households face energy burdens that are 64% higher than the national average. And in Marion County, communities of color have a higher energy burden than the city average of 6%.

Along with facing these significant energy burdens, specific communities across Indiana are particularly vulnerable to climate risks and impacts, including extreme weather events, extreme heat and urban heat island effects, flooding, poor air quality, and agricultural loss. Indianapolis has been identified as a priority community by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) because it is overburdened by pollution and climate risks.

Current State

The historic practice of redlining has caused communities of color in Marion County to face disproportionate environmental burdens including air pollution, water pollution, lead in soil and water, and excessive heat while also having less access to environmental benefits such as parks, greenspace, and renewable energy. Additionally, environmental solutions are not always affordable nor equitably distributed, creating additional disparities. One such environmental injustice can be seen through energy burdens, where BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities pay a higher percentage of their income on electricity. In Indianapolis, the average energy burden is two times the national average with some BIPOC neighborhoods paying three and four times the national average to power their home.

Environmental Strategies and Tactics
  1. Enhance renewable energy access, lower utility bills, and build resilience through the Solar for All initiative.
    1. Inform and engage the community in Solar for All programs to increase awareness and qualify low-to-moderate-income renters and homeowners for the program.
    2. Collaborate with local utilities and the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission on policies that support green infrastructure and promote affordability and feasibility for residents.
    3. Develop a Solar for All committee of community members and partners to inform the coordination of on-the-ground logistics, community engagement, and implementation.
  2. Empower community-driven solutions to local environmental justice issues through coalition building and resource accessibility.
    1. Convene an Environmental Justice (EJ) coalition of communities, organizations, funders, local government, and leaders in the climate space to create a shared understanding of EJ issues, develop goals, and create local networks of power to advocate for EJ issues and solutions.
    2. Fund organizations that facilitate, support, or invest in community-based solutions for local EJ issues such as air quality, water quality, lead in soil, heat impacts, food access, and disparities in access to greenspace.
    3. Develop a technical assistance resource hub to increase access and opportunity for EJ funding for local community organizations.
  3. Expand access to environmental justice education and experiences for youth, immigrants, and returning citizens to cultivate a green workforce pipeline.
    1. Convene youth organizations to identify barriers, needs, and goals for increased engagement in EJ work and/or the green workforce pipeline.
    2. Support certification programs, upskilling opportunities, and degree pathways for green careers, with a focus on engaging youth, system-involved individuals, and other underrepresented community members.
    3. Provide funding to organizations that educate youth on human and environment interactions, climate change, and environmental justice programs that include advocacy and civic engagement components.