Leah Thomas | |
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Personal information | |
Born | December 17, 1994 |
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Environmental activist |
Website | www |
Instagram information | |
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Leah Thomas, also known as Green Girl Leah, [1] [2] is an American environmental activist active on Instagram whose work focuses on the application of intersectionality to environmental justice. [3] [4] She has been recognized in the 2024 Forbes 30 Under 30 list of notable young professionals. [5]
Thomas grew up in Saint Louis, Missouri, 10 minutes from where the shooting of Michael Brown by police happened. [6] She found no one was talking about the intersection of environmental and social injustices, such as the Flint, Michigan water crises where 57% of the population is Black. [7]
She gained notoriety after an Instagram post of hers that used the phrase "intersectional environmentalism" and called for environmental activists to support Black Lives Matter in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. [2] [8] [9]
She runs Intersectional Environmentalist, a website targeted towards people interested in the relationship between the environment and social justice. [2] She is the author of The Intersectional Environmentalist: How to Dismantle Systems of Oppression to Protect People + Planet, which provides advice to environmental activists and describes theories of relationships between race, privilege, social justice, and the environment. [10] [11]
Thomas advocates for climate change activists to adopt anti-racist approaches in order to facilitate an intersectional environmental movement. [12]
Thomas graduated Chapman University in Orange, California in 2017 with a B.S. in Environmental Science and Policy. [13]
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Youth activism is the participation in community organizing for social change by persons between the ages of 15–24. Youth activism has led to a shift in political participation and activism. A notable shift within youth activism is the rise of “Alter-Activism” resulting in an emphasis on lived experiences and connectivity amongst young activists. The young activists have taken lead roles in public protest and advocacy around many issues like climate change, abortion rights and gun violence.
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Dorceta E. Taylor is an American environmental sociologist known for her work on both environmental justice and racism in the environmental movement. She is the senior associate dean of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Yale School of the Environment, as well as a professor of environmental justice. Prior to this, she was the director of diversity, equity, and inclusion at the University of Michigan's School of Environment and Sustainability (SEAS), where she also served as the James E. Crowfoot Collegiate Professor of Environmental Justice. Taylor's research has ranged over environmental history, environmental justice, environmental policy, leisure and recreation, gender and development, urban affairs, race relations, collective action and social movements, green jobs, diversity in the environmental field, food insecurity, and urban agriculture.
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