Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
The JEDI Journey
The US Climate Action Network (USCAN) is committed to fighting climate change in a just and equitable way. In 2018, USCAN members came together to create the USCAN Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Statement to reflect this commitment.
To bring our JEDI values to life in every facet of our work—from daily operations to member engagement—we also established a JEDI Operations Handbook, developed by the JEDI Committee in close collaboration with USCAN staff. This dynamic resource outlines measurable goals and outcomes, ensuring that USCAN advances the ideals of the JEDI Statement while holding both staff and board members accountable.
We recognize that the journey toward equity and justice is ongoing, and we are fully committed to listening and learning.
JUSTICE, EQUITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION STATEMENT
As our mission indicates, we are committed to fighting climate change in a just and equitable way.
We believe that we can accomplish far more together than alone. Our passion for a just and equitable world requires that we are inclusive, transparent and fair in all that we do, and that we act in solidarity and with appreciation for the work of our colleagues around the world, especially in the global south. We can only achieve our vision with full participation from a multitude of cultural and life experiences and communities.
Our commitment to building trust and alignments among our members requires that we build situations and relationships where all members are valued, heard, respected and empowered, so that our collective action is informed by a broad range of perspectives.
Our pursuit of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion recognizes that the impacts of climate change disproportionately hurt the most vulnerable communities, including women, communities of color, income-challenged communities, and those who are not able to advocate for themselves.
Science and community input inform our work. We know that systems of racial and economic injustice must be dismantled and a new system created to bring justice to the marginalized communities that are most affected by climate change. We seek to address these historic inequities in our work.
We value justice, equity, democracy, inclusion, trust, relationships, optimism, wisdom, and perseverance. In order to fulfill our purpose and live our values, we aim to make our commitment to justice, diversity, equity and inclusion evident in our network structures, organizational structures, policies, board of directors, staff, mission, and vision. We are accountable to each other in our network, and transparent in our pursuit of equity. We embrace people of all backgrounds and seek to foster a culture where everyone is welcome, and historically marginalized voices are heard. We move collectively, taking leadership from frontline communities, marginalized communities, and communities of color. We act in accordance to the Environmental Justice Principles and the Jemez Principles for Democratic Organizing.
In summary, our commitment to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion is essential to achieving our mission and vision.
