Patty O’Keefe: The Sierra Club’s Role in Connection Environmentalism to Social Justice

After much anticipation, I was joined by Patty O’Keefe at our local Dunn Bros coffee shop and immediately noticed her positivity and enthusiasm. Patty eagerly jumped into conversation, offering insightful commentary as to how her work interacts with environmental justice issues. After five years at Minnesota 350 (MN 350), Patty joined the Sierra Club staff as an organizing representative last year. A Minnesota native, Patty graduated from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, with a major in Youth Studies. Although entering college fairly familiar with environmentalism and issues of equity, Patty actively entered the environmental justice movement during a study abroad program in Durban, South Africa, through the Higher Education Consortium for Urban Affairs (HECUA). This opportunity highlighted how social justice is intrinsically connected to current environmental justice issues we are facing. “That was my first time learning about environmental issues through that [social justice] lens and through a human lens.” Patty’s study abroad experience, along with an internship at MN 350, awakened her to new ideas and perspectives. She realized how institutionalized racism and classism predetermine the longevity and health of particular groups. Ingrained systems of oppression have disproportionately left communities of color and low economic standing to bear the consequences of environmental exploitation and devastation. From that moment on, Patty made it her goal to form meaningful relationships with marginalized or previously silenced communities and to more broadly raise awareness about Environmental Justice issues.

At the Sierra Club, Patty works on a multitude of projects and programs pertaining to environmental justice. Patty’s work largely involves working directly with community members, but she also notes the other aspects of her position. Her community-based engagement is supplemented by legislative and regulatory work, along with the logistics element involving email and procedural duties. Patty commits herself to community-based projects and outreach initiatives in hopes to form lasting relationships with community members and to build platforms through which marginalized groups can express themselves and advocate for increased environmental sustainability and justice.

Patty strives to incorporate an environmental justice lens into the many issues and projects that she is involved in. Having realized how certain groups are treated as disposable, Patty notes how these populations are disproportionately impacted by issues of pollution, poor water quality, asthma, and cardiovascular disease, to name a few. Patty assists in projects pertaining to pipeline issues and pollution more generally, but a main focus of her current work is the Upper Harbor Terminal Project, a redevelopment plan for a 48-acre plot of land in North Minneapolis. Patty works to address the issues emerging in the redevelopment process, noting “…there are lots of plans for it to turn into this big destination spot and there are concerns from the community that it’s going to lead to increased gentrification and that the area will remain cut off or inaccessible from North Minneapolis community members.” Although the developers provided a Development Concept Plan (link) and community committees for the project, in Patty and other community members’ views, the creators tend to speak vaguely about environmental and sustainability goals and have failed to incorporate the views of community members in the early stages of formulating the plan. The project includes plans to incorporate a music venue and areas for office space, housing, and commercial use. According to some community groups, the redevelopment plan seems to favor the interests and financial gains of private business as opposed to the general public (Friends of the Mississippi River). With these priorities, there have been insufficient attempts to consider the ramifications of the project on surrounding neighborhoods and to provide platforms for the community to be involved in the redevelopment process.

As a population composed of predominantly people of color and poor communities, North Minneapolis acts as a microcosm of the nation and world, as vulnerable communities have been historically neglected and dismissed when a government funds redevelopment plans. Bearing this in mind, Patty wants to see “the North Minneapolis community be included and centered in terms of thinking about what they want to do with that land in the future.” She has already spoken with many community members and gained a comprehensive understanding of how the public perceives the redevelopment project. “Popular views (about the development) are that they want it to be an area that is accessible to all incomes, that is open to the public and not just private land, that there is affordable housing, just because that is getting harder and harder to find, and that there is art and a cultural aspect that really reflects the community in which it is in.” Because “there is not a lot of faith that the city or the developers will create something that feels like it is for Minneapolis,” Patty prioritizes building trust and facilitating the construction of platforms for marginalized communities to express their opinions and be included in the redevelopment project.

In this era of climate urgency, many are seeking immediate solutions to mitigate our impact on the planet. Unfortunately, in the rush to solve the climate crisis, many underlying justice issues are left in the dark. Some might view environmental justice issues as disconnected from or irrelevant to specific issues of carbon emissions, but “it is part of the same fight and the same problem.”This realization made a clear imprint on me as Patty noted the challenges she faces in her work. Some organizations formulate initiatives to reduce carbon or ecological footprint, placing a priority on mitigating climate change while neglecting its relationship to environmental and social injustice. “In this hysteria that we are in with climate change and how big of a threat it is and how much urgency there is to act right away, I feel like some of these environmental justice issues don’t get the attention that they deserve.” Some might view environmental justice issues as disconnected from or irrelevant to specific issues of carbon emissions, but “it is part of the same fight and the same problem.” Patty acknowledges that Sierra Club has improved in its efforts to connect environmentalism to issues of environmental justice and equity, however she asserts “it’s a big ship to resteer and there are a lot of other organizations that are not making that an intentional focus.”

Additionally, it is difficult to form meaningful relationships with community members under time and resource constraints. It’s a balance between recognizing the timeclock and moving “at the speed of relationships, rather than hopping in and out of a community.” Without partnerships in the community, effective and impactful projects cannot reach fruition. Relationships are fundamental to building trust between people of different perspectives and have an integral role in maximizing a community’s ability to address environmental justice issues. Given this reality, Patty grapples with the question, “How do we do good work that takes time also knowing that we’re on this urgent timeline?”

Lastly, another obstacle is responding to skeptics of climate change. Under time and resource limitations, the Sierra Club needs to choose which groups to focus on mobilizing or persuading, whether that be outright climate change deniers or individuals somewhere in the middle of the spectrum. The organization has found the most success when focusing on individuals who are undecided or are concerned about the issue but “haven’t been given the pathways for involvement or exactly don’t know what to do about it.” Thus, Patty considers the disconnect between climate change programs and environmental justice issues, along with limited time and resources, as the main challenges to fulfilling the goal of environmental justice and sustainability.

I am often disillusioned by the obstacles we face in pursuing environmental justice, but I felt uplifted when Patty shared several heartening messages about what keeps her motivated in this fight for environmental justice. By shifting focus to magnify the voices of marginalized and previously silenced groups, the environmental movement can more readily incorporate programs and messages supporting equity and justice.Under time constraints and worsening environmental conditions, Patty celebrates the successes and progress made by the environmental movement. “I’ve seen a real shift in the public of people being more open and interested in these ideas of equity and really understanding that we need to make a radical shift in the ways we are living and the ways we are treating each other.” By shifting focus to magnify the voices of marginalized and previously silenced groups, the environmental movement can more readily incorporate programs and messages supporting equity and justice. With more perspectives, we can mobilize under a more holistic platform that connects ecological issues to principles of equity in order to dismantle ingrained systems of oppression and environmental injustice. Patty recognizes the obstacles in this national and global fight, but remains motivated and persistent. Her inspiration springs from “feeling committed to wanting to make the world a better place and feeling like we are making progress, albeit it’s slow.” There are significant barriers and issues to address, but the cherished moments of success and progress encourage us to keep pressing forward.

Amidst the chaos of trying to find solutions that address both ecological and environmental justice challenges, I was most looking forward to hearing Patty’s recommendations for young activists. I, like all individuals, have limited time and resources, so it was important to me to learn how to optimize my opportunities and ultimately help expedite the process of attaining environmental justice. To start, Patty emphasizes the importance to “be bold” and push for a popular movement capable of benefiting society as a whole. Patty acknowledges the impact of incremental work in advancing environmental justice, but she argues that priority should also be placed on mobilizing on a larger scale to advocate most effectively and efficiently. Second, Patty stresses the need to reframe and reorient issues of environmentalism around goals of equity and justice. The current environmental justice fight is not solely pertaining to how we can switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources, but “making some fundamental paradigm shifts in how we relate to each other.” Connecting climate change to systemic forms of oppression and injustice allows us to reach a comprehensive understanding of the roots of our current problems and the methods through which to seek remediation and sustainability. Lastly, Patty recognizes the value in “self-care” and finding a balance between dedicating yourself to the fight and understanding your personal needs. She suggests that we change “the culture within our movements to make sure that we are seeing ourselves and treating ourselves as whole people and not completely sacrificing our mental and physical well-being for the work.” Thus, Patty’s advice seems extremely beneficial to young people wanting to participate in or lead the emerging environmental justice movement.

Learning about Patty’s involvement in North Minneapolis had me pondering questions about what effective community engagement looks like and my role in fostering environmental justice. Our conversation left me curious as to what deliberate and specific steps can be taken to increase agency and autonomy given limited time to form relationships. I understand that public events and public outreach are readily-used tools, but how do we measure their effectiveness? It seems a particularly difficult task to support and offer guidance as an external actor with different background and experience compared to the community. Hearing about the impact Patty and the Sierra Club have given these obstacles was impressive and has inspired me to explore these complex dynamics further.

Patty’s passion for environmental justice was palpable throughout the interview. She sees the common disconnect between climate change initiatives and environmental justice issues and hopes to more clearly link current environmental issues to goals of social equity and sustainability. I was inspired by Patty’s thoughtful and pragmatic recommendations regarding the actions young activists can take to further the environmental justice agenda. Hearing her perspective on the issue has motivated me to similarly question my surroundings more often and to formulate programs that suit the goals of both carbon reduction and environmental justice. Although the sense of urgency is ever-present, with significant obstacles yet to be addressed, Patty’s heartfelt account gave me hope that we can make a difference and pursue a future of environmental justice and sustainability.

References

“FMR Opposes Upper Harbor Terminal Plan, Calls for More Community Engagement.” Friends of the Mississippi River, 4 Mar. 2019, www.fmr.org/more-community-engagement-needed-for-upper-harbor-terminal.

“Minneapolis Upper Harbor Terminal Development Project.” Upper Harbor Terminal Mpls, upperharbormpls.com/.

“Staff.” Sierra Club, 29 Mar. 2019, www.sierraclub.org/minnesota/staff.