TL;DR - we’re back and excited to build community with you all!
The last few years have been a whirlwind. After the 2016 election, community organizers in the Bay and elsewhere found ourselves mobilizing to meet the urgent needs of the Trump era. The COVID-19 pandemic also made in-person organizing and land-based work much more difficult.
In the past couple of years, a few of us have been working to get Brown & Green up and running again. Between 2021 and 2022, we hosted 2 virtual member meetings, where folks shared their thoughts and priorities around climate justice. There was interest in continuing Brown & Green’s legacy of demonstrations for international solidarity, and some Brown & Green members attended 350 Bay Area’s COP26 march in Berkeley. Holding signs that read “Global North, pay your climate debts,” we marched from Sproul Plaza through the streets of Berkeley. We also recognized the need for community-building within our work, and some Brown & Green members went hiking together in the Berkeley hills in Spring 2022.
Folks have also expressed interest in doing some land-based work together. Now that things are a little safer COVID-wise, a few of us are planning to volunteer at Friends of Sausal Creek’s Dimond Canyon Restoration Workday. The workday is on Saturday, March 4th from 9 AM - 12 PM at Dimond Park in Oakland, and more information can be found on FOSC’s website here. We’d love for you to join us - please RSVP via email to sangeeta.sarkar94@gmail.com if you’re interested!
For South Asian Americans this is an especially hard time as we hear about the loss of life in our homelands as well as the devastation closer to home, all caused by extreme weather events. This year’s monsoon season resulted in floods that devastated regions in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh, displacing millions, and claiming over 1,200 lives. Then Houston faced unprecedented flooding, with one Indian student, Nikhil Bhatia, among the over 30 lives that been lost so far. And even as we were getting used to that, Mumbai, one of India’s largest cities, came to a standstill because of historic amounts of rainfall.
Though climate change cannot be directly blamed for these events, we know that it is the reason behind the increase in frequency and intensity of these weather events. The impact of the historic amounts of rainfall are also exacerbated by overdevelopment, deregulation, and lack of emergency planning and resources.
As South Asian Americans with a global justice lens, we recognize that we continue to benefit from living in a country that has historically been one of the largest contributors to climate change, while our home countries are among the ones most devastated by its impacts. The associated global inequity of wealth and resources also means that Houston will probably recover faster than people in the poorer regions of Nepal, India and Bangladesh.
How do we turn our heartbreak into hope? It’s important not to get overwhelmed by the feelings of grief and hopelessness.
The most urgent need is to give to humanitarian efforts in South Asia and in Houston. We recommend sending money to organizations that are serving the most marginalized and those with on the ground experience.
One of the most productive things we can do is to support local environmental justice organizations that are working on long term solutions to the climate crisis and envisioning a post-carbon economy that also improves the lives of marginalized communities.
We need to stand with frontline communities at home like the NoDAPL movement against the Dakota Access Pipeline, and in the homeland like those fighting the coal fired power plants near the Sunderbans, one of the most biodiverse regions of the world.
What we cannot afford to do is forget about the issue once the waters subside. Our solidarity with impacted communities needs to extend beyond this moment of crisis.
San Francisco, Sept. 18 — Over two dozen climate activists held a memorial march in San Francisco from the Asian Art Museum to Union Square, to mourn the global victims of this summer’s record heat.
The march began at the steps of the Asian Art Museum at 4:30 pm. After a moment of silence and a Hindi song, the march proceeded along Market St. to rally at Union Square. Many wore white, the traditional mourning color in much of South Asia. Marchers also carried flowers. At Union Square they lit candles and placed flowers to honor the dead.
“Climate change kills. This summer, over 2500 lives were lost in India and 1200 in Pakistan,” said Barnali Ghosh, Coordinator of Brown and Green: South Asian Americans for Climate Justice. “In Karachi, Pakistan, 65,000 people were treated for heatstroke.”
San Francisco resident Balu Vellanki described the impact of deadly heat in his hometown of Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, India. “When I was a kid, 111° F was the highest temperature ever recorded in summer. Now it routinely touches 118° F. And the official number of deaths may not include all the older people who die in large numbers due to heat and lack of electricity and shelter.”
Vellanki described how “climate change multiplies existing inequities. During heat waves, privileged families can afford to sit at home with the air conditioning on from 11 AM to 4 PM, but laborers and farmers have to work, so they suffer more deaths.”
The solutions involve both adapting to climate change in impacted nations, as well as climate polluters mitigating their ongoing pollution. Explains Vellanki, “The real reason for heat deaths is apathy. While simple things like "water and shade stations” can save 100s of lives a year, they are not provided. But the issue is larger than this. There is a constant warming trend that is taking more lives every year.“
“Here In California,” said Ghosh from Brown and Green, “we experience climate change in the form of a devastating drought and fires burning in Northern California, even while oil industry lobbyists were attacking SB 32 and SB 350, critical updates to California’s climate protection agenda. We need to pay attention to local legislative fights that can have dire consequences for communities here and in South Asia.”
Sara Greenwald of 350 San Francisco described the road ahead. "Scientists are raising the alarm that extreme heat waves and droughts are becoming worse because of climate disruption. We want this march to be a wake-up call to leaders worldwide. It’s been over 20 years since the UN climate treaty at Kyoto was signed, and the U.S. government has failed to act. The signatories will be meeting in Paris this year and people will march by the tens of thousands worldwide to demand action. The Northern California Climate Mobilization march will start at the Civic Center in Oakland on November 21.”
The march ended at Union Square, with participants continuing the conversation with passers-by asking questions. “Let us end our observance in a spirit of hope,” said Ghosh said at the end of the event. “We know what we need to do. Climate colonization has put the environmental burden on the most vulnerable nations. We must put a stop to it.”
Anirvan Chatterjee, Coordinator of Brown and Green: South Asian Americans for Climate Justice We were there to grieve, to share the stories, and help make connections between local and global. As we walked, passers-by often stopped to take photos during the memorial march.
Some were aware of climate change in general, but not about the mass heat deaths, and were surprised to realize that climate change is already having devastating impacts by intensifying public health challenges like heat deaths.
Silicon Valley, September 27 — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started using language like “green India” and “climate justice” in his speeches. A coalition of San Francisco Bay Area Indian American environmentalists are now demanding that Narendra Modi actually live up to his own words — and will be highlighting the gap between Modi’s words and actions outside his speech in San Jose, California on Sunday, September 27.
Barnali Ghosh, a member of Brown & Green: South Asian Americans for Climate Justice, says “Modi talks about the environment in his foreign speeches, but under Modi’s leadership, India has witnessed massive commitments to continued coal expansion, removal of crucial safeguards against industrial polluters, and attempts to weaken legal protections for vulnerable farming and forest dependent communities.”
Virali Modi-Parekh, a member of the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, says “Democracy isn’t just a word. We stand up in support of Indian environmental activists being stripped of their rights to freedom of speech. We are also speaking in solidarity with those fighting every day for the land they live on, the water they drink, and the air they breathe. As Prime Minister Modi accelerates corporate India’s profits, we demand that he prioritize equity and justice. Without this, whose development is Modi’s government really ensuring?”
Climate researcher Neil Tangri says, “While governments around the world are committing to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, Modi’s government is instead planning to increase India’s air pollution by burning more coal. Thousands of Indians already die every year from air pollution, and India is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change. For its own health, India badly needs to go on a coal diet.”
For more information on the September 27 protest, follow the Alliance for Justice and Accountability’s #ModiFail campaign: http://ModiFail.com/
BACKGROUND:
Since 2014, the Indian government has launched a campaign of intimidation and harassment against front-line community and indigenous organizations, people’s movements and urban activists. The Modi government has launched a national campaign of harassment against environmental groups. This crackdown on free speech and dissent does not bode well for the future of India’s environment.
Following this crackdown on free speech:
Modi’s government has lost every court case in India related to the government crackdown on NGOs
Close to 150 Indian NGOs have already signed an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to end its coercive actions and targeting of civil society.
The United States and German ambassadors to India have expressed their concern, with U.S. ambassador Richard Varma warning of the “potentially chilling effect” of the attacks.
Under Modi’s leadership India may commit to the world’s most ambitious solar energy targets, which is deserving of praise.
However, this commitment is being undercut by the Modi government’s decision to double down on dirty coal production, which kills 100,000 Indians every year. The weakening of land rights of millions of farmers and forest-dwellers are linked to this national expansion of coal mining.
Since January, 2014, Idle No More SF Bay have been leading healing walks along the refinery corridor of the Northeast San Francisco Bay that includes the cities of Pittsburg, Martinez, Benicia, Rodeo and Richmond. These cities live in the shadow of refineries owned by Tesoro, Shell, Valero, Conoco Phillips 66 and Chevron.
We had a small but dynamic group join the last walk of 2015. It was an incredible experience to walk though communities impacted by refineries and most importantly to be led on this path by Native American leaders.
The Refinery Corridor Walks are inspired by a long history of healing walks in Native America, the Tar Sands Healing Walks in Alberta, Canada, the Longest Walks, and the Peace & Dignity Journeys.
ASATA members mobilized around many issues in February…
On February 7th, we marched through the streets of Oakland with Brown And Green: South Asians for Climate Justice to demand a ban on fracking in California. During the week leading up to this historic protest, ASATA member Anu Mandavilli organized a teach in about the issues surrounding fracking – the impact on farmers and immigrant communities and California’s water supply. Participants then painted protest signs saying “You Can’t Drink Oil,” “Ban Fracking Now,” and “Toxic Lies.” Anu also gave a speech at the rally in Downtown Oakland before the march started and addressed the Labor contingent who celebrated solidarity among all workers.
On February 19th, Preeti Shekar dedicated her segment on APEX Express to a discussion about Islamophobia and racial justice after the tragic shootings in Chapel Hill. Participating in the discussion were ASATA members Sabiha Basrai and Anirvan Chatterjee along with journalist Hani Taha from Al Jazeera. The conversation focused on anti-black racism, the impacts of white-supremacy, and why the hashtag “Muslim Lives Matter” is not the way to show solidarity. Anirvan spoke in more detail about the project Black Desi Secret History. Listen to the full program here >>
In the heart of Silicon Valley sits the most closely watched South Asian Congressional race in the coming November 4 elections. Residents of California’s 17th Congressional District, an Asian majority district with over 100,000 South Asian residents, will pick between two Democrats: incumbent Mike Honda, serving since 2001 and known for his work on civil rights, education, and labor, and challenger Ro Khanna, a former deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Commerce who teaches economics at Stanford.
Which candidate is better for voters who care about climate justice?We reached out to both campaigns with questions on their stances on areas like public transit, fracking, and the United States’ responsibility as the #1 historical emitter. Honda’s campaign provided us with written responses, while we got on the phone with Khanna for a candid conversation.
Both candidates had strong responses. If every member of Congress talked about the climate crisis like Ro Khanna or Mike Honda, we might be in a very different place as a country and an international community. Here are some of our favorite responses…
Mike Honda on the issues:
On U.S. responsibility to developing nations, as the #1 historical climate polluter: “It is impossible not to acknowledge the role the United States and the rest of the developed world played in causing climate change…Our nation must lead by example and commit to policies that reduce our contribution to global warming, and we must help developing nations quickly adopt clean, renewable energy as they advance their economies, so that they skip the dirty fossil fuel driven phase of development and don’t make the same mistakes that the United States made that have exacerbated our climate problems.”
On his record: “I introduced the Smart Electronics Act, which seeks to reduce the environmental impact of the growing number of consumer electronics; I helped found the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition to push Congress toward action on renewable energy; and am a member of the Safe Climate Caucus to further the dialogue on climate action in Congress.”
On the campaign to have the University of California divest from fossil fuel industries: “the University of California, as the flagship university of our state, a leader on climate issues, should shift its investments from fossil fuels to those that address climate risk”
On natural gas: “Many Members of Congress have supported the fracking boom and justified it based on natural gas being a cleaner fuel than coal or oil. I have not joined them because I believe that, while burning natural gas may reduce other forms of pollution, it is still a fossil fuel whose burning releases greenhouse gases that are changing our climate.”
On fracking in California: “Fracking in the Monterey Shale is aimed at recovering oil, unlike in other parts of the country where fracking is used to drill for natural gas. As a result, fracking in California will have a much more significant impact on climate change than fracking elsewhere, and it is not consistent with California’s leadership on climate.
Ro Khanna on the issues:
On U.S. responsibility to developing nations, as the #1 historical climate polluter: “We have to recognize that developing nations didn’t have the advantage of industrialization over the last century. We have an obligation to help with their economies so they can grow in environmentally responsible ways. It’s hard to make the case that they should stop all economic growth for environmental reasons — as part of a community of nations, we need to be ready to help.”
On ending federal subsidies for oil, gas, and coal companies: “This is part of my proposal for corporate tax reform. The corporate tax code is skewed. We need to eliminate these kinds of tax breaks and subsidies, and support the innovation economy, including solar, wind, and geothermal.”
On the campaign to have the University of California divest from fossil fuel industries: “I support that!”
On tar sands infrastructure, including Keystone XL: “It’s terrible, totally sends the wrong message. We need to be investigating alternative energy, solar, and wind, and its a crutch to think that Keystone will solve our energy needs. It will create much more harm.”
On learning of Stanford/UC Irvine research showing that natural gas will fail to reduce emissions: “I would look to scientific studies to help guide my thinking, and want to stay connected to experts. For example, a colleague at Stanford shared facts with me about the links between climate change and drought, which changed the way I think about both issues. If elected, I want to prioritize scientific leadership.”
On regulating fracking: “If elected to Congress, I will support legislation to remove the so-called ‘Halliburton Loophole’ [oil and gas industry exemptions from the Clean Air and Clean Water Act]. Hydraulic fracturing needs to be subject to the same environment regulations as other fossil fuel extraction techniques.”
Our analysis:
Both candidates talked about wanting to end fossil fuel subsidies, investing in alternatives like solar, and opposing new dirty infrastructure like Keystone XL. We were happily surprised by some of their answers, like their joint support for the University of California fossil fuel divestment campaign, and their immediate acknowledgement of our responsibility to impacted developing nations as the #1 historical climate polluter.
There were also areas where we wished the candidates’ policy visions went much further. For example, while both sides talked about their support for expanding BART, the commuter subway system connecting suburbs to cities like San Francisco, neither candidate’s answers or websites address critical (and cheaper) solutions like improving buses or trying to fund free youth transit, to provide low-carbon lifeline mobility to our family and community members who are low-income, immigrant, youth, and/or seniors. (Climate justice is about reducing both emissions and inequity.)
Ultimately, as Brown and Green: South Asian Americans for Climate Justice, we’re choosing to endorse Rep. Mike Honda because of his proven track record of climate leadership in Congress (we join groups like Climate Hawks, the Sierra Club, and the League of Conservation Voters). Climate change is likely to be the defining environmental and public health crisis of the 21st century, and for over a decade, Honda has been doing exactly the the kind of work we need.
Ro Khanna is one of us — a civic-minded Desi nerd — and we know he can do better than this. Khanna assured us that he’s willing to follow the science, and we’re hopeful that he’ll do so and reconsider his position on these false solutions, particularly if he wins the CA-17 Congressional seat on November 4. Whether it’s Honda or Khanna, we need real climate leaders in Congress.
Are you a South Asian American voter with environmental values? What choices are you making this November and beyond? Continue the conversation!
1. What’s wrong with pushing investments in natural gas? “Abundant supplies of natural gas will do little to reduce harmful U.S. emissions causing climate change, according to researchers at UC Irvine, Stanford University, and the nonprofit organization Near Zero. They found that inexpensive gas boosts electricity consumption and hinders expansion of cleaner energy sources, such as wind and solar.” (source)
2. What’s wrong with “energy from waste”? A Brown and Green member notes: “‘Energy from waste’ is essentially the same as…old-fashioned incineration. The claim of ‘reducing pollution’ is ridiculous, as this would create a whole new massive pollution source, and ‘low cost’ is laughable as modern incinerators typically cost several hundred million dollars each. Also, with California under mandate to increase composting, recycling and waste reduction to 50%, this would create infrastructure that would need to be fed—meaning it would either negatively impact local recycling rates, or end up importing garbage to burn from other localities, as has happened often elsewhere.”
South Asian Americans form an integral part of Silicon Valley (CA-17), and hold strong environmental values. For example, 67% of Indian Americans consider themselves environmentalists, and 69% would prioritize the environment over the economy.
Brown and Green: South Asians for Climate Justice is launching a new candidate survey to evaluate whether Mike Honda or Ro Khanna can provide the strong climate justice leadership our communities in California’s 17th Congressional District are looking for.
South Asian Americans stand for climate justice because political inaction directly impacts the people we love. We’re seeing drought, wildfires, and decreased snowmelt runoff in California, crop failures in India, mega-floods in Pakistan, catastrophic sea level rise in Bangladesh, glacial lake outburst floods in the Himalayas, and more. The WHO estimates over a million additional climate-linked deaths in the next 20 years. Continued inaction is not an option.
Candidate Survey:
Honda and Khanna campaigns, please email your responses to ca17@brownandgreen.org. Feel free to elaborate on any of the Y/N questions.
Is anthropogenic climate change an imminent threat to human civilization? Y/N
Would you end federal subsidies for oil, gas, and coal companies? Y/N
Do you support the demands of the University of California fossil fuel divestment campaign? (stop all new investments in fossil fuel industries, drop all remaining investments within 5 years, and invest in alternatives that address climate risk and sustainability) Y/N
To prevent dangerous climate change, scientists say we need to leave 80% of known fossil fuel reserves in the ground. Do you support a climate test for new fossil fuel infrastructure that will keep this unburnable carbon in the ground? Y/N
Do you support a moratorium on all new tar sands infrastructure, including the Keystone XL pipeline? Y/N
How do you feel about Governor Brown’s stance on fracking in California?
According to the latest University of California research, natural gas will fail to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. How will you follow the science, and work to avoid false “solutions” like natural gas as a member of Congress?
The United States is the #1 climate emitter, historically. What do you believe our responsibility is to impacted developing nations?
CA-17 residents needs more investment in public transit. How would you help raise additional funds for public transit infrastructure in the district and across the country?
Rep. Honda has a reputation as a climate leader in Congress. How will you build on and exceed this record?
New York, September 21 — One hundred fifty members of eleven South Asian community groups came together in New York City Sunday morning to participate in the People’s Climate March, the largest such event in history. Participants in the joint South Asians for Climate Justice group came from as far away as California and the UK, carrying signs like “when fossil fuels burn, Kashmir floods” and “we are armed only with peer-reviewed science.” A South Asians for Climate Justice contingent also met at a parallel Sunday afternoon event in the San Francisco Bay Area, in addition to large climate marches and gatherings in in major cities throughout South Asia over the weekend, including New Delhi, Islamabad, Dhaka, Kathmandu, Colombo, and Malé.
The New York event saw three generations of South Asian environmental activists coming together to learn and march. It started with members of the Bangladeshi community sharing their hopes for the talks. According to Sayed Rahman from the Bangladesh Environmental Network, “while world leaders are dithering, climate refugees in Bangladesh are living with the consequences of catastrophic climate change created by major greenhouse gas polluters like the United States and Europe. We call on world leaders, particularly President Obama and the U.S. Congress, to work toward ambitious international emissions reduction targets.”
The large Sikhs for Climate Justice group began the morning with a prayer before the march, linking their environmental activism with their faith. According to Bandana Kaur, environmental researcher and Program Ambassador of EcoSikh, “we march because this understanding of the universe is embedded within the Khalsa ideal for Sikhs—a word that also signifies the sovereign body of Sikhs who make a commitment to protecting the most marginalized among us, a strong call to environmental justice.” Sonny Singh of Red Baraat and a small army of musicians marched with the group, providing an energetic soundtrack to a charged and emotional day.
New York-based organizing groups emphasized the links between local and global. Padma Seemangal of the Indo-Caribbean Alliance said her group was participating because “As a community we have witnessed first-hand the devastating effects of Hurricane Sandy both in our neighborhood and across New York City.“ Rasel Rahman, a senior community organizer at Chhaya CDC sees deep links between the global climate justice movement and his agency’s housing rights work in New York. “From Hurricane Sandy in New York to mega-floods in Kashmir, climate change robs communities around the world of their support systems. We demand equitable reinvestment in all our communities, and call for UN Climate Summit participants to fully fund the Green Climate Fund.”
“Desis can play a critical role in the American climate movement,” described Barnali Ghosh of the San Francisco Bay Area-based group Brown and Green: South Asian Americans for Climate Justice. “South Asia is climate ground zero, and our actions in the United States can either reduce the risk or further endanger 1.7 billion people. That means every time we take action in the US to vote for climate leaders, shut down another dirty energy facility, divest from mega-polluters, or reinvest in real solutions, we achieve a double victory—not only helping communities in the US, but simultaneously also in our homelands. We call on President Obama to show world leadership in ending public funding of the dirty energy economy.”
Devika Ghai of the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action was one of twenty community members participating in a parallel climate rally taking place in Oakland, California. She worried about her grandmother, whose community had been affected by the 2013 Uttarakhand floods in India. Ghai compared the climate crisis to colonialism, where much of the atmosphere’s ability to absorb carbon has been monopolized by a small group of industrialized nations, while residents of the most vulnerable communities around the world pay the price.
Linked events were held in every South Asian country Saturday and Sunday. “Even though we bear the least responsibility for causing global greenhouse gas emissions, we are being hit the hardest,” writes Nepalese Youth for Climate Action and other organizers of the People’s Climate March Kathmandu. “Climate change is an extreme global injustice as well as a contributor to inequality. Urgent action is needed to reduce emissions and support the poorest to adapt to climate change. The UN climate summit provides a historic opportunity.”
After the New York event, writer and performer Alok Vaid-Menon, known for their work with South Asian spoken word group DARKMATTER, blogged about the day, referencing those most impacted by climate injustice, including “the Global South, indigenous peoples, gender minorities, poor people, small farmers, fisherfolk, and nomadic peoples. We regard climate change not as a phenomenon that is created by ‘humans’ but by the continuation of colonial systems into the atmosphere. The division of 'humans’ and 'environment’ is itself a colonial one. 'Climate change’ is not a failure of Western capitalism, but actually the total success and realization of it. The same poverty-generating systems that built the West are the ones wreaking havoc on the water, air, and land. The 'solution’ then, is not to get down to 350 parts per million, or to institute a carbon tax, or create more solar panel startups, or fund another wind farm, or screw in better light bulbs. The goal is to continue to fight state violence, colonialism, and capitalism at their roots.”
List of organizations participating in the South Asians for Climate Justice contingent at the People’s Climate March:
For the press: Representatives of each of these groups are available for interview, and additional photos are available. Please call +1 510-859-7531 or email presscontact@brownandgreen.org.
Brown and Green: South Asian Americans for Climate Justice is an emerging network of activists working to protect our communities from climate impacts.
We're @SouthAsianGreen on Twitter, and fb.com/SouthAsianGreen on Facebook.
