Hello everyone! It’s May, which means it’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month! Just like I did for Women’s History Month in March, I thought it would be neat to shine a light on some of the coolest and strongest AANHPI voices in the environmentalism space, especially since this region of the globe is so diverse and devoted to protecting our planet! As a girl of Asian ancestry myself, both of my parents hailing from India, I could not be more excited to be celebrating our heritage this month! Let’s get right into it with my list of 10 amazing AANHPI environmentalists then!
- Varshini Prakash
In 2017, 24-year-old Indian American Varshini Prakash and a few peers put their heads together and founded the Sunrise Movement, a grassroots organization empowering the next generation to make their voice heard over issues involving the environment. Led entirely by youth, the organization has been credited for its role in helping the government pass the Inflation Reduction Act last summer, the largest climate investment ever made in the history of the US. Sunrise has also been a strong supporter of the famous proposed Green New Deal. Now the executive director at Sunrise at 30 years old, Prakash has been featured in Forbes, the 2019 Time Next 100 List, Rolling Stone, and several others, even having her writing featured in The Washington Post and The New York Times. Although she has a prevalent voice in the national industry, her activism really began to take root when she was a student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, during which she became one of the people at the forefront of the Divest UMass campaign. This movement eventually led the university to become the first large public university to completely withdraw its investments in fossil fuels in the nation. With 400 hubs around the nation, Sunrise is now working towards getting what they call the “Green New Deal for Schools” and the “Green New Deal for Communities” passed and implemented at the national level.
- Fenton Lutunatabua
Fiji native Fenton Lutunatabua is not only an environmentalist, but an amazing photographer and writer as well. Inspired by the impacts of climate change he was seeing in his own home, he became a volunteer at Greenpeace, all while documenting the beauty of Fiji through magnificent prose and pictures alike. From there, he became the Pacific Communications Director of 350.org, an online community made of “ordinary people” dedicated to bringing climate justice and equity to all. The organization aims to get its message across in a simple and clear manner, and hopes that others can use their work to do the same as well through their plethora of free online resources. In keeping with his storytelling past, Lutunatabua also founded Beyond the Narrative, a passion project bringing the richest tales of the Pacific Islands to the online community. Through blog posts and a podcast, Beyond the Narrative is on a mission to spark motivation in its listeners to protect the artistry that is nature in the Pacific Islands.
- Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner
Hailing from the Marshall Islands, Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner is a poet, performer, and educator primarily focused on bringing the harmful legacy of nuclear testing and climate change done on the islands to light. To spread her rich ancestral culture, she helped create the nonprofit Jo-Jikum, devoted to supporting Marshallese youth in environmentalism and local issues. Meaning “your home”, or “your place”, in the native language, the nonprofit has launched several successful campaigns advocating for the lush islands, including the Climate Change Arts Camp, Digital Storytelling Collective, and an internship program. Jetn̄il-Kijiner also imbibed her stunning poetry skills in her book “Iep Jaltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter”, in which she captured the very living essence of the life and culture of the islands, addressing the raging concerns affecting her home such as the aforementioned nuclear testing and indigenous rights.
- Kristy Drutman
Jewish Filipina American Kristy Drutman is both a climate activist and entrepreneur. Known as the “Brown Girl Green”, Drutman founded the Green Jobs Board, which, as the name suggests, invests in careers in the environmentalism space by featuring a wide variety of positions within the field. From copywriters to outreach coordinators, the platform makes pursuing a job in environmentalism as easy as possible, even including separate designations for BIPOC-owned businesses all over the nation. Drutman’s website also features her writing, presented in passionate yet easily digestible works exploring some of the less known aspects of environmentalism. She also has been featured in several workshops and panels across the country, partnering with some of the leading voices in the government such as Senator Cory Brown from New Jersey. Some of Drutman’s other projects include her podcast, which keeps her listeners informed on all the latest happenings in the field, and the Outdoorist Oath, a nonprofit aiming to connect outdoorists, or those who love the outdoors, together.
- Ali A. Zaidi
Originally from Pakistan, Ali Zaidi is making waves in the government. With an A.B. from Harvard, and a J.D. from Georgetown, Zaidi has been using his law expertise to invest in the sustainability sector. During his time teaching at Stanford, he helped co-found Lawyers for a Sustainable Economy, an initiative providing legal services to environmentalist startups. He also served as the State of NY’s Deputy Secretary for Energy and Environment and Chairman of Climate Policy and Finance, through which he helped lead the state through its efforts to increase its environmental resilience. He then took his work to the national level as the Associate Director for Natural Resources, Energy, and Science for the Office of Management and Budget and Deputy Director of Energy Policy for the Domestic Policy Council during the Obama administration, where he contributed to domestic and international environmental policy. He is now a long-time Assistant to the President and National Climate Advisor, leading the White House Climate Office where he makes sure President Biden’s policy agenda is seen through.
- Shilpi Chhotray
Based in California, Indian American Shilpi Chhotray has dedicated her life to not only fighting plastic pollution, but environmental justice and equity as well. She previously served as Break Free From Plastic’s Global Communications Lead, where she aimed to reinvent the plastics narrative and bring about systemic change in plastic production. Along the way, she was featured in The New York Times, National Geographic, and others, but she soon realized that the environmentalism space was being dominated by the same few stories. She knew she had to do something to diversify the discourse. The answer? People Over Plastic. Co-founded in 2021 by Chhotray and Patrice Simmons, the one-of-its-kind media organization has created a hub full of stories told from perspectives commonly gone ignored, such as those of the BIPOC community. Its podcast regularly features tales highlighting the environmental injustices the world sees daily in hopes of invigorating the next wave of leaders and powering an anti-racist future.
- Charles Lee
Chinese American Charles Lee has been involved in environmental activism, specifically dealing with environmental justice, from the early 1980s, and has since helped transform the movement into the very thing it is now. He noticed that the 1982 Warren County, NC, plan to dump hazardous waste into the area disproportionately affected Black communities, a phenomenon that was frequently overlooked. Once his fears were confirmed by a study conducted by the US Government Accountability Office, Lee set out to bring this story to light – on a national level. Over the next few years, he collected demographic data from across the country, which ultimately culminated into the 1987 landmark report, “Toxic Wastes and Race in the United States”, of which he was the primary author. This report, which showed that race was often the only factor used to choose where toxic waste facilities were located, quickly became the roots from which the environmental justice movement grew. Since then, he has organized the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit, and served on the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, even becoming the chair of its waste council. He also took up several leadership positions in the EPA, and is now the Senior Policy Advisor to the Office of Environmental Justice.
- Bonnie Tsui
Growing up in a competitive swimming background, Bonnie Tsui expresses her love for the water through her writing. The author of Hong Kong descent has written multiple bestselling and award-winning books, most notably “American Chinatown: A People’s History of 5 Neighborhoods”, an ode to the past, present, and future of Chinatowns across the nation. The impressive way by which she intertwined affectionate personal memories with facts and physical descriptions earned her a Best of 2009 Notable Bay Area Books Selection. The list of the accolades she’s received since has grown, now including the Lowell Thomas Gold Award for travel journalism, the Jane Rainie Opel Young Alumna Award at Harvard University and the 2009-2010 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. Her most recent book, “Why We Swim”, explores why humans naturally gravitate towards water, as she did, whether it be lakes, pools, rivers, or oceans. It was one of TIME magazine’s 100 Must-Read Books of 2020.
Well, that’s all for today! I hope that you’ve taken something away from these 8 incredible stories, and join us in celebrating one of the largest and most influential communities this month!
Hello everyone! It’s May, which means it’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month! Just like I did for Women’s History Month in March, I thought it would be neat to shine a light on some of the coolest and strongest AANHPI voices in the environmentalism space, especially since this region of the globe is so diverse and devoted to protecting our planet! As a girl of Asian ancestry myself, both of my parents hailing from India, I could not be more excited to be celebrating our heritage this month! Let’s get right into it with my list of 10 amazing AANHPI environmentalists then!
- Varshini Prakash
In 2017, 24-year-old Indian American Varshini Prakash and a few peers put their heads together and founded the Sunrise Movement, a grassroots organization empowering the next generation to make their voice heard over issues involving the environment. Led entirely by youth, the organization has been credited for its role in helping the government pass the Inflation Reduction Act last summer, the largest climate investment ever made in the history of the US. Sunrise has also been a strong supporter of the famous proposed Green New Deal. Now the executive director at Sunrise at 30 years old, Prakash has been featured in Forbes, the 2019 Time Next 100 List, Rolling Stone, and several others, even having her writing featured in The Washington Post and The New York Times. Although she has a prevalent voice in the national industry, her activism really began to take root when she was a student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, during which she became one of the people at the forefront of the Divest UMass campaign. This movement eventually led the university to become the first large public university to completely withdraw its investments in fossil fuels in the nation. With 400 hubs around the nation, Sunrise is now working towards getting what they call the “Green New Deal for Schools” and the “Green New Deal for Communities” passed and implemented at the national level.
- Fenton Lutunatabua
Fiji native Fenton Lutunatabua is not only an environmentalist, but an amazing photographer and writer as well. Inspired by the impacts of climate change he was seeing in his own home, he became a volunteer at Greenpeace, all while documenting the beauty of Fiji through magnificent prose and pictures alike. From there, he became the Pacific Communications Director of 350.org, an online community made of “ordinary people” dedicated to bringing climate justice and equity to all. The organization aims to get its message across in a simple and clear manner, and hopes that others can use their work to do the same as well through their plethora of free online resources. In keeping with his storytelling past, Lutunatabua also founded Beyond the Narrative, a passion project bringing the richest tales of the Pacific Islands to the online community. Through blog posts and a podcast, Beyond the Narrative is on a mission to spark motivation in its listeners to protect the artistry that is nature in the Pacific Islands.
- Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner
Hailing from the Marshall Islands, Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner is a poet, performer, and educator primarily focused on bringing the harmful legacy of nuclear testing and climate change done on the islands to light. To spread her rich ancestral culture, she helped create the nonprofit Jo-Jikum, devoted to supporting Marshallese youth in environmentalism and local issues. Meaning “your home”, or “your place”, in the native language, the nonprofit has launched several successful campaigns advocating for the lush islands, including the Climate Change Arts Camp, Digital Storytelling Collective, and an internship program. Jetn̄il-Kijiner also imbibed her stunning poetry skills in her book “Iep Jaltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter”, in which she captured the very living essence of the life and culture of the islands, addressing the raging concerns affecting her home such as the aforementioned nuclear testing and indigenous rights.
- Kristy Drutman
Jewish Filipina American Kristy Drutman is both a climate activist and entrepreneur. Known as the “Brown Girl Green”, Drutman founded the Green Jobs Board, which, as the name suggests, invests in careers in the environmentalism space by featuring a wide variety of positions within the field. From copywriters to outreach coordinators, the platform makes pursuing a job in environmentalism as easy as possible, even including separate designations for BIPOC-owned businesses all over the nation. Drutman’s website also features her writing, presented in passionate yet easily digestible works exploring some of the less known aspects of environmentalism. She also has been featured in several workshops and panels across the country, partnering with some of the leading voices in the government such as Senator Cory Brown from New Jersey. Some of Drutman’s other projects include her podcast, which keeps her listeners informed on all the latest happenings in the field, and the Outdoorist Oath, a nonprofit aiming to connect outdoorists, or those who love the outdoors, together.
- Ali A. Zaidi
Originally from Pakistan, Ali Zaidi is making waves in the government. With an A.B. from Harvard, and a J.D. from Georgetown, Zaidi has been using his law expertise to invest in the sustainability sector. During his time teaching at Stanford, he helped co-found Lawyers for a Sustainable Economy, an initiative providing legal services to environmentalist startups. He also served as the State of NY’s Deputy Secretary for Energy and Environment and Chairman of Climate Policy and Finance, through which he helped lead the state through its efforts to increase its environmental resilience. He then took his work to the national level as the Associate Director for Natural Resources, Energy, and Science for the Office of Management and Budget and Deputy Director of Energy Policy for the Domestic Policy Council during the Obama administration, where he contributed to domestic and international environmental policy. He is now a long-time Assistant to the President and National Climate Advisor, leading the White House Climate Office where he makes sure President Biden’s policy agenda is seen through.
- Shilpi Chhotray
Based in California, Indian American Shilpi Chhotray has dedicated her life to not only fighting plastic pollution, but environmental justice and equity as well. She previously served as Break Free From Plastic’s Global Communications Lead, where she aimed to reinvent the plastics narrative and bring about systemic change in plastic production. Along the way, she was featured in The New York Times, National Geographic, and others, but she soon realized that the environmentalism space was being dominated by the same few stories. She knew she had to do something to diversify the discourse. The answer? People Over Plastic. Co-founded in 2021 by Chhotray and Patrice Simmons, the one-of-its-kind media organization has created a hub full of stories told from perspectives commonly gone ignored, such as those of the BIPOC community. Its podcast regularly features tales highlighting the environmental injustices the world sees daily in hopes of invigorating the next wave of leaders and powering an anti-racist future.
- Charles Lee
Chinese American Charles Lee has been involved in environmental activism, specifically dealing with environmental justice, from the early 1980s, and has since helped transform the movement into the very thing it is now. He noticed that the 1982 Warren County, NC, plan to dump hazardous waste into the area disproportionately affected Black communities, a phenomenon that was frequently overlooked. Once his fears were confirmed by a study conducted by the US Government Accountability Office, Lee set out to bring this story to light – on a national level. Over the next few years, he collected demographic data from across the country, which ultimately culminated into the 1987 landmark report, “Toxic Wastes and Race in the United States”, of which he was the primary author. This report, which showed that race was often the only factor used to choose where toxic waste facilities were located, quickly became the roots from which the environmental justice movement grew. Since then, he has organized the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit, and served on the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, even becoming the chair of its waste council. He also took up several leadership positions in the EPA, and is now the Senior Policy Advisor to the Office of Environmental Justice.
- Bonnie Tsui
Growing up in a competitive swimming background, Bonnie Tsui expresses her love for the water through her writing. The author of Hong Kong descent has written multiple bestselling and award-winning books, most notably “American Chinatown: A People’s History of 5 Neighborhoods”, an ode to the past, present, and future of Chinatowns across the nation. The impressive way by which she intertwined affectionate personal memories with facts and physical descriptions earned her a Best of 2009 Notable Bay Area Books Selection. The list of the accolades she’s received since has grown, now including the Lowell Thomas Gold Award for travel journalism, the Jane Rainie Opel Young Alumna Award at Harvard University and the 2009-2010 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. Her most recent book, “Why We Swim”, explores why humans naturally gravitate towards water, as she did, whether it be lakes, pools, rivers, or oceans. It was one of TIME magazine’s 100 Must-Read Books of 2020.
Well, that’s all for today! I hope that you’ve taken something away from these 8 incredible stories, and join us in celebrating one of the largest and most influential communities this month! See you all next time!
Content Sources:
- https://www.cns.umass.edu/news-events/news/varshini-prakash-15-builds-modern-climate-movement
- https://talanoa.com.au/climate-change-and-fenton-lutunatabua_page/
- https://www.kathyjetnilkijiner.com/
- https://www.browngirlgreen.com/who-am-i
- https://www.climateone.org/people/ali-zaidi
- https://www.shilpichhotray.com/
- https://www.esri.com/about/newsroom/blog/charles-lee-environmental-justice-leader/
- https://www.bonnietsui.com/
From One Human To Another 