Trash, Toxins, and Tough Conversations: Exploring Intersectionality in Environmentalism

By: Kiara Aggarwal, Ella Melocoton, Marissa Monterio, and Lyzeil Escalo

#BLACKLIVESMATTER #WOMENEMPOWERMENT #BEWHOYOUAREFORYOURPRIDE We bet you’ve seen these tags and might have even used them, but do you ever wonder how these topics and environmentalism align? Are you thinking what I’m thinking? Yep! They’re intersectional! But hang on…intersectionality…environmentalism… What do these words even mean? And how are these concepts related? 

Simply put, intersectionality in environmentalism is a movement within environmentalism that advocates for the protection of both people and the planet. According to Curious.earth, marginalized communities such as the LGBTQ+ community, women, and Indigenous communities (amongst others) are all at a greater risk of experiencing the effects of environmental impacts and climate change. They are also the ones who are often unprepared and lack resources in times of crisis due to their stance in these marginalised groups, and their needs are frequently overlooked. For instance, the indigenous people who are expected to live in eco-friendly practices that rely on ecologically stable regions for their living and welfare are the ones who are mainly vulnerable compared to those who live in economically thriving regions. This similarly goes with the LGBTQ+ community, women, and people of color. In the aftermath of environmental disasters, women and girls are disproportionately affected by the impending consequences. In regions where women are primarily responsible for gathering essential resources for the family such as food and water, the scarcity of these resources caused by climate change or climate disasters can place a greater pressure on women to provide which, in many cases, means girls are pulled out of school to help with the growing amount of domestic work in the house. Such effects are often much worse for women, and largely in communities of color. Even in many humanitarian programs, the organization does not take into account and, in many cases, even disregards the needs of people of diverse gender and sexual orientations, causing aid to be unable to meet the needs of these individuals.

At its core, intersectional environmentalism seeks to understand how to better serve the people in said groups as well as mitigate the effects of environmental tragedies for these communities. 

Environmentalism is not just about a jute bag, or a half bucket of water, or reducing your GPT search, it’s more than that, it affects the smallest, the tiniest of things in the world, which today indirectly or directly affect those who have always been suppressed under the feet of deep pockets. Today’s climate change is not just burning the trees; it’s also the puppet master of our social hierarchy, the puppeteer who holds the strings to marginalize, to discriminate, to suppress, to endanger. Today, when we switch on our A/Cs, we don’t realize but unintentionally and unknowingly, we reinforce the systems of power and oppression such as white supremacy, patriarchy, capitalism, and heterosexism. Low-income or communities of colour are more prone to living in areas which are immediately polluted by industries like mining or construction and are directly affected by drastic health and environmental consequences - thus the pressure comes on caretakers, the women of the house who are forced for tending to ill members when high quality care is not accessible or affordable this further widens the gap in our economy and make women of colour or LGBTQIA+ persons as well more economically vulnerable. We need social climate policies that are just, fair, and account for compounding identities and do not ignore the subtle effects of climate change, which henceforth leads us to a more equitable and better approach. We all are different, all come from different cultures and backgrounds, different upbringings, different needs but an intersectional approach holds us all together uniting us in solidarity, and with unity comes agency, and if we are united, we can collectively put an end to the drivers of climate change and begin to create a climate-just world. But climate justice starts with small choices… so, how’s that A/C doing?

References:

Redirect Notice. (2025). Google.com. https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.londonenvironment.net/environmentalism_in_action_environmental_justice_and_intersectionality%23:~:text%3D%25E2%2580%259CIntersectional%2520environmentalism%2520is%2520an%2520inclusive

Redirecting. (2025). Google.com. https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.unwomen.org/en/articles/explainer/how-gender-inequality-and-climate-change-are-interconnected&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1751207416092670&usg=AOvVaw0W8cs64RhBAgKcHRAXOAQ_