Environmental nonprofits in the United States have skewed white since, well, the beginning of the modern environmental movement. The founding — ahem — fathers of the movement were, unsurprisingly, mostly white men: John Muir and Henry David Thoreau, followed later by David Brower, Edward Abbey, and so on. (One of the notable exceptions, of course, being Rachel Carson of Silent Spring fame.) This legacy has followed the movement well into the twenty-first century, and to the major environmental groups carrying the torch today.
Roughly 80 percent of the staff at 40 biggest environmental nonprofits, foundations, and government organizations in the US is white. According to a new report, a big part of the problem is retention — environmental organizations are struggling to keep people of color on staff once they have hired them.
The report, released by Green 2.0, an advocacy group campaigning to improve diversity in the environmental movement, notes that many green groups have made significant pushes to improve internal diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice as of late. In some ways, these efforts are paying off. Since just last year, the percentage of senior staff positions held by people of color at the 40 largest environmental groups has increased from 14 percent to a moderately better 21 percent. (Certain sectors have not fared as well: The number of people of color holding senior staff positions at green foundations, for example, saw a drastic drop from 33 percent to 4 percent between 2017 and 2018.)
Leave A Comment