Identity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement

Sana Iqbal is an Environmental, Health, and Safety Specialist with a focus on air compliance in a manufacturing setting. In her blog, Sana discusses the mentors who helped her at different points in her journey and how each of those relationships helped guide her to where she is today as a professional in the environmental sector.

Jasmin Graham is a shark scientist and environmental educator who specializes in elasmobranch (shark and ray) ecology and evolution. In her blog, Jasmin discusses her journey and what ultimately led her down the path of becoming an author and co-founder of Minorities in Shark Sciences (MISS).

K.J. Chien (she/her) is a Taiwanese-American writer based in New York City, and a finalist for Grist’s Imagine 2200 climate fiction competition for her short stort, “The Ones Left Behind”. She loves using the speculative and the strange to examine themes such as intergenerational relationships, the Asian American diaspora, and to dream of different tomorrows.

In the first of this two-part blog series, we interview Sage Hoffman Nadeau, winner of Grist's Imagine 2200 climate fiction competition, about her background, short story, and her perspective on the role of writers in the environmental movement.

Candice Youngblood is a passionate environmental justice lawyer and advocate. Candice currently practices law at Earthjustice, where she focuses on issues at the intersection of clean transportation and racial justice. 

Layla Razek, Green 2.0’s Digital Media and Communications Fellow, explores how artistic expression can be used to disrupt dominant modes of thought. Retracing her own family history of resistance, her poem unfolds into a journey to find her place in a global movement for social and environmental justice.

Ranjani Prabhakar is a musician, educator, and environmental advocate based in Washington, DC. She is the songwriter and front-woman of the indie band Lil Idli and co-founder of the production company Flame Lily Media, two outfits that use the power of art and music to inspire ecological justice. Ranjani is also part of Earthjustice’s policy team, leading the Healthy Communities team responsible for advancing legislative and advocacy strategies at the nexus of public health and environmental justice. Recognized for her work in bridging advocacy and the arts, she was selected by the PBS All Arts program as one of five Climate Artists in 2024, and was a recent awardee of the US Grassroots Accelerator by the Women’s Earth Alliance.

Looking for a job can be difficult in any sector, especially if you are just starting out in your career or transitioning to a different field. Don’t know who to turn to for advice? We asked environmental leaders for their green flags to help align your job search with a role that best suits your needs.

Kristie Cabrera is a queer, non-binary, Latine, disabled, and neurodivergent accessibility and inclusion consultant with a background in occupational therapy. Their work is rooted in disability justice. They inspire land-based organizations to dream about accessibility and inclusion. They provide tailored tools, strategies, and training to weave these dreams into reality.

Maliyah Womack reflects on her journey navigating the environmental sector and the feeling of imposter syndrome that follows many young women of color in the movement. Despite years of experience in community organizing, she often felt out of place in the environmental space. Through self-reflection and shared experiences with other women of color, Maliyah came to realize that their lived experiences are their greatest strengths.