<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/why-the-future-of-clean-energy-depends-on-upholding-energy-as-a-civil-right/>
"In a striking image shared during a presentation to the Energy Consumers of
Australia, a highway runs through the middle of Austin, Texas, splitting the
city in two.
One side of the highway is shrouded in darkness, whilst the other is brightly
lit.
“The left side of the photo is representative of a low-income community,
primarily people of colour … and on the right side are the more affluent, they
tend to be majority white,” says Shalanda Baker, Vice Provost for
Sustainability and Climate Action at the University of Michigan, and a former
Director of Energy Justice and Equity under the Biden administration.
The image encapsulates a core warning from Baker: the clean energy transition,
if not guided by justice, risks reproducing the harms and inequities of the
fossil fuel era.
In the United States, one in three households experiences energy insecurity,
and the environmental burdens of industry and the energy system fall
predominantly on low-income communities and communities of colour.
“Over half of black households and almost half of Latinx households and over
60% of native households are energy insecure,” Baker told the
SwitchedOn
Australia podcast. “That’s a very dangerous place to be.”
In her professional work Baker aims to make visible the invisibility of energy
hardship in both public discourse and policy. But it’s her personal experience
of energy insecurity that gives her a powerful insight into its impacts, and
emboldens her professional advocacy for energy justice.
“My own lived experience really parallels that of so many Americans,” she
says."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
