Environmental justice to the UMass Chan community means the social and environmental protection and uplifting of local communities disproportionately affected by climate change and discriminatory environmental policy. The environmental justice topics most important to the community are health, waste, clean air and energy, environmental justice education, community engagement, policy, and technology.
This definition was reached by researching qualitative methods of interviewing, developing questions, creating promotional materials, organizing sessions where participants shared their perspectives and priorities, and analyzing the responses using thematic analysis to identify common themes and patterns across sessions.
Below are summaries of what members of the UMass Chan community had to say about environmental justice topics:
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Human health is being affected negatively by climate change and that impact is felt greater by people of marginalized communities and/or pre-existing conditions such as asthma. It is important for medical professionals and students to be educated on these issues to improve patient care. The impact of environmental burdens such as pollution can have generational impacts on the health of individuals. | |||||
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There should be efforts made within every department to reduce waste in their operations. |
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UMass Chan should be more involved in the community it serves and find ways to implement environmental justice principles in every aspect of the hospital and school. As UMass Chan continues to grow, community consultation should be at the forefront of early planning. |
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 Clean Air & Energy |
Investing in clean energy technology on campus and nationwide is an important step to ushering in a cleaner environment for all. |
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UMass Chan should use their influence to oppose regressive environmental policy being implemented. Environmental policy should balance its benefits for the average citizen and corporations to promote local investment in sustainability. | |||
 Environmental Justice Education |
UMass Chan should be a hub for environmental justice education, not just for the UMass Chan community, but the whole of Worcester. |  Technology |
UMass Chan should consider the social and environmental impacts of technological innovations such as AI as they continue to be implemented. | |||
This project was scoped, developed, and executed from August 2025 to October 2025 by environmental justice intern Tionge Nakazwe. Nakazwe, along with working on other environmental justice projects, facilitated four listening sessions with eight participants, building relationships and furthering support for environmental justice within the community.
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Banner image: UMass Chan Pavilion by schutton, CC BY-NC 4.0
