Environment

The consequences of pollution, climate change and environmental disasters are not distributed equally. Research has found that they hit vulnerable communities – those who are already disadvantaged by income, wealth and/or race – hardest. For example, low-income communities of color have higher exposure rates to air pollution and are more likely to have limited access to clean water. Those who bear environmental burdens also often lack the resources to escape or prevent them – people who do not have the financial mobility to relocate away from polluted water, the resources to rebuild after a storm or the political power to protect their communities from environmental hazards. This section of the Spotlight website gathers the latest research, news and opinion on the environment and poverty.