OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon » Blog http://www.opalpdx.org Organizing People Activating Leaders Wed, 23 Jun 2010 22:08:39 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 East Portland Youth of Color Mobilize! http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/t3apH2WEliY/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/06/east-portland-youth-of-color-mobilize/#comments Wed, 23 Jun 2010 22:06:41 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/?p=191 East Portland is the fastest growing part of Portland, with the highest number of children and youth.  A majority of these are youth of color, immigrants and refugees.  In line with OPAL’s mission to empower low-income and communities of color for environmental justice, OPAL has been organizing with African American, African Immigrant, Asian Bhutanese and [...]]]> East Portland is the fastest growing part of Portland, with the highest number of children and youth.  A majority of these are youth of color, immigrants and refugees.  In line with OPAL’s mission to empower low-income and communities of color for environmental justice, OPAL has been organizing with African American, African Immigrant, Asian Bhutanese and Burmese Refugees.

In June and July, OPAL has teamed up with Audubon to coordinate 3 youth-centered field trips specifically for youth of color and immigrant youth of East Portland.   The field trips include:

The goal is to expose these groups who, due to urbanization, immigration, discrimination etc, have had less access to green spaces such as Leach and the Spring Water Corridor.  Youth will also share their stories and concerns about their community, and learn strategies for community organizing with OPAL.

For more information, contact OPAL Community Organizer Grayce Bentley 503-928-4354 grayce at opalpdx.org.  OPAL has worked with youth through different programs and activities including Voices for Empowerment, and school-based education.  OPAL is an active member of the East Portland Action Plan, and supports efforts to increase youth participation in our community.

]]> http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/06/east-portland-youth-of-color-mobilize/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/06/east-portland-youth-of-color-mobilize/ Rally for the Ride Friday 4pm http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/2zKkq6lOlXs/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/06/rally-for-the-ride-friday-4pm/#comments Wed, 09 Jun 2010 13:13:51 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/?p=187 OPAL Bus Riders Unite is rallying in support of increased funding for public transportation operations this Friday June 11th 4pm with the TriMet workers union ATU Local [...]]]>
  • Do you believe in more affordable, frequent buses in Portland?
  • Does it bother you that TriMet continues to cut the buses & raise fares, impacting the most vulnerable transit dependent communities?

    • OPAL Bus Riders Unite is rallying in support of increased funding for public transportation operations this Friday June 11th 4pm with the TriMet workers union ATU Local 757 at Director Park on SW Park & Taylor downtown Portland.

    Public transportation funding continues to decay in America, and the problem is coming to Portland Oregon.  We have one of the model transit agencies in TriMet, who deserve a lot of credit for their sustainability efforts.  There are challenges and a need to renew priorities – particularly for TriMet’s most vulnerable transit riders, those who really depend every day on public transportation.  Fares have increased over 70% in the last decade, and service cuts have eliminated more than 100,000 hours of bus and MAX service in the last two.

    Join OPAL Lead Bus Organizer Shannon Olive and members of OPAL’s emerging Bus Riders Unite! at Director Park by Fox Tower in downtown Portland, to show support for public transportation.

    What: Rally for the Ride
    Where: Director Park SW Park & Taylor in Portland
    When: 4:00-6:00 PM Friday June 11th

    If you can attend with OPAL, please let us know!  503-928-4354 or info@opalpdx.org

    ]]>     http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/06/rally-for-the-ride-friday-4pm/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/06/rally-for-the-ride-friday-4pm/     Race and Public Policy http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/FVhxrv9oqcw/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/race-and-public-policy/#comments Thu, 29 Apr 2010 05:52:03 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/?p=173

    ]]> http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/race-and-public-policy/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/race-and-public-policy/     Urban EJ Panel April 24 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/yls0i5TZUXg/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/urban-ej-panel/#comments Mon, 19 Apr 2010 04:40:00 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/?p=155 OPAL will be joined by the Los Angeles Bus Riders Union on a panel highlighting urban environmental justice community organizing.  The panel is a part of the 15th annual Coalition Against Environmental Racism conference at the University of Oregon in Eugene.  The conference is free and open to the public, running all day Saturday April 23rd.

    CAER [...]]]>     OPAL will be joined by the Los Angeles Bus Riders Union on a panel highlighting urban environmental justice community organizing.  The panel is a part of the 15th annual Coalition Against Environmental Racism conference at the University of Oregon in Eugene.  The conference is free and open to the public, running all day Saturday April 23rd.

    Lead Bus Organizer Shannon Olive will be speaking with Manuel Criollo from Los Angeles, and a representatives from the Oregon Toxics Alliance from 515pm-630pm just before the big CAER Dinner in Willamette Building Rm 110.

    ]]>     http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/urban-ej-panel/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/urban-ej-panel/     EJ Training May 16th http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/ohWio20MmlQ/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/ej-training-may-16th/#comments Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:41:17 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/?p=150 OPAL invites community members of East Portland and Gresham to learn and become engaged around environmental justice issues.  OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon is organizing and educating specifically around issues of transit justice and health, working with bus riders, long-time community residents, and in neighborhoods that have been historically absent from important [...]]]> OPAL invites community members of East Portland and Gresham to learn and become engaged around environmental justice issues.  OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon is organizing and educating specifically around issues of transit justice and health, working with bus riders, long-time community residents, and in neighborhoods that have been historically absent from important decisions about our environment.  Our wonderful City of Portland, City of Gresham, and the Clackamas-Multnomah-Washington Tri-County Region, is rapidly growing.

    New residents are coming from across America, and across the World, and East Portland will become a major new urban center.  East Portland is also home to Oregon’s immigrants, working-class, and African-American communities displaced from N/NE Portland.  How will we protect and support a healthy quality of life?  How will we address the disparities and inequalities we experience, in our transportation options, in our economic development, in our exposure to toxics and bad air?

    Community Environmental Justice Training 101
    Sunday, May 16th, 2010
    3:00 PM to 6:00 PM
    OPAL Office 2407 SE 49th Ave (at Division)

    TriMet: #4 Division Bus
    Free Training.  RSVP with Joseph (503)928-4354 or joseph @opalpdx.org.
    Childcare available
    Frequently Asked Questions:
    What is environmental justice? Environmental Justice is the right to a clean and safe place for all people where we live, work, play, study, and pray.
    Why attend this EJ training?  This is an opportunity to understand the connections between racism, economics and environment, and to meet other people who live in East Portland who are concerned about their health, and a clean and safe neighborhood.  We believe it is important to build relationships within the community in order to have the knowledge and empowerment to work for solutions together.
    How do I get more involved? OPAL is recruiting new volunteers to participate in our grassroots education and organizing for environmental justice.  This training is the best first step to getting more engaged, meeting new people, and becoming a part of our organization.  (OPAL Involvement Page)
    ]]>     http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/ej-training-may-16th/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/ej-training-may-16th/     OPAL Engages Nail Salon Health http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/kcxxNmymGA4/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/opal-and-ochn/#comments Fri, 02 Apr 2010 21:03:24 +0000 joel http://www.opalpdx.org/?p=1 “You can’t imagine how many chemicals are being used by workers in nail salons everyday.  Most of us do not have enough knowledge about the health hazards of the products we are using.”

    - Connie, a California cosmetologist who has suffered respiratory problems from working in beauty salons for 13 years.

    There [...]]]> “You can’t imagine how many chemicals are being used by workers in nail salons everyday.  Most of us do not have enough knowledge about the health hazards of the products we are using.”

    - Connie, a California cosmetologist who has suffered respiratory problems
    from working in beauty salons for 13 years.

    There are over 10,000 nail salon workers in Metro Portland, and over 50% speak Vietnamese and languages other than English.  OPAL has recently participated in the emerging Oregon Healthy Nail Salons Collaborative, currently convened by environmental and health public and academic institutions including DEQ, Multnomah County Health and Oregon Health Sciences University.

    OPAL recently helped co-sponsor a strategic planning session with a table of government staff in hopes of clarifying a vision for engaging the community and committing to next steps.  For more information contact OPAL Board Chair Ben Duncan who is a lead convenor through his role in the Multnomah County Health Department.

    ]]> http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/opal-and-ochn/feed/ 1 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/04/opal-and-ochn/     The Need for Environmental Justice in a “Renewed” Portland http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/_TDkxUkj1oE/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/01/the-need-for-environmental-justice-in-a-%e2%80%9crenewed%e2%80%9d-portland/#comments Sun, 10 Jan 2010 02:14:04 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/wp/?p=93 The Need for Environmental Justice in a “Renewed” Portland Kevin Odell, OPAL Co-Founder

    The City of Portland, within Multnomah County, Oregon, has the highest population density within the state.  Compact development issues are a priority in the region, as the Urban Growth Boundary and incentives for increased density limit sprawl and create more livable communities, thus making the [...]]]> The Need for Environmental Justice in a “Renewed” Portland
    Kevin Odell, OPAL Co-Founder

    The City of Portland, within Multnomah County, Oregon, has the highest population density within the state.  Compact development issues are a priority in the region, as the Urban Growth Boundary and incentives for increased density limit sprawl and create more livable communities, thus making the Portland Metro region a model for innovation and urban planning across the nation. Yet the benefits of livability, sustainability, and “green” living, including healthier air, clean water, viable mass transportation, and access to parks and resources, are primarily directed to Portland’s privileged neighborhoods. Gentrification of formerly low-income neighborhoods displaces families to resource-deprived corridors adjacent to highways and industrial areas, deficient in parks and greenspace, affordable housing and amenities and rife with brownfields, bringing into question the equity of Portland’s “sustainability.” Major highways and thoroughfares, in addition to municipal landfills, sewage treatment plants and polluted waterways, traverse these communities and form the most polluted traffic corridor in the state.

    Two of the target areas for OPAL organizing work, Outer Southeast and North/Northeast Portland represent examples of these areas. OPAL’s goals and organizing work is focused on bringing people together to discuss positive change in the community, including addressing air pollution through citizen action, conversion of brownfields and vacant lots into greenfields and community benefits, and developing a strong and collective voice focused on engaging elected officials and local government on sustainability and equity for all communities and neighborhoods in Portland, regardless of income or race.

    ]]> http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/01/the-need-for-environmental-justice-in-a-%e2%80%9crenewed%e2%80%9d-portland/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2010/01/the-need-for-environmental-justice-in-a-%e2%80%9crenewed%e2%80%9d-portland/     OPAL Bids Farewell to Founding ED http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OPALpdx/~3/LRVl4EOawdg/ http://www.opalpdx.org/2009/12/opal-bids-farewell-to-founding-ed/#comments Fri, 25 Dec 2009 20:49:10 +0000 radicalhapa http://www.opalpdx.org/wp/?p=85 OPAL’s Board and Staff hosted a wonderful community gathering in honor of Kevin Odell, founding Executive Director of OPAL in 2005.  Kevin has been a leader and advocate for environmental justice in oregon for over a decade.  He is transitioning to Boston and preparing for fatherhood!  [UPDATE: Isaac is born!]

    Over 75 community members and friends celebrated [...]]]> OPAL’s Board and Staff hosted a wonderful community gathering in honor of Kevin Odell, founding Executive Director of OPAL in 2005.  Kevin has been a leader and advocate for environmental justice in oregon for over a decade.  He is transitioning to Boston and preparing for fatherhood!  [UPDATE: Isaac is born!]

    Over 75 community members and friends celebrated at OPAL’s newly re-arranged office in East Portland on SE Division & 49th Ave.  Music, drinks, and conversation flowed into the December evening night.  Special thanks to Shannon Olive and volunteers for making the evening a special and festive event.  Over $500 was raised to support OPAL’s new Transit Health & Justice campaign that was recently awarded a capacity building grant from the NW Health Foundation.

    OPAL’s Board announced that co-founder and local attorney Jon Ostar and board member and community organizer Joseph Santos-Lyons would become Co-Directors effective January 2010.

    ]]> http://www.opalpdx.org/2009/12/opal-bids-farewell-to-founding-ed/feed/ 0 http://www.opalpdx.org/2009/12/opal-bids-farewell-to-founding-ed/