How we Win! Summary of findings on successful climate justice campaigns in North America

This page is a work in progress! Stay tuned for more information :)

How we win was a 2023 research project supervised by Dr. Jen Gobby, and conducted by McGill students Cassandra Ciafro, Anna Henry, Frida Sofia Morales Mora, Thomas Nakasako, Dafne Ozcan, Nico Serreqi and Lea Vadez Reyes. It investigates the following question: What can be learned from the struggles and successes of intersectional climate campaigns across Turtle Island (North America) over the past 20 years, and what factors contribute to the success of these campaigns? This page includes a summary of the campaigns/movements included in the report and the tactics used, key factors that contributed to the success of multiple campaigns/movements, HUB team observations and suggestions based on key takeaways, plus key quotes from interviews and surveys with successful activists/organizers for more specific suggestions and examples.

To read the full report, see the following: How We Win! A Qualitative Review of Successful Climate Justice Campaigns in North America in the Last 20 Years

Summary of the successful climate justice campaigns

Suggestion: look for campaigns that most resonate with an issue near you, a campaign you're working on etc. Are their tactics that haven't yet been applied in your context?

'‘Success’ was defined as having achieved material gains, or advancements in physical, financial, legal, or electoral conditions. 14 successful intersectional climate justice campaigns from Mexico, the so-called United States and so-called Canada were explored to respond to the research question. These were:

Stand LA (US)

Summary of campaign/group	Founded in 2013, Stand-LA formed to halt oil drilling in residential areas in Los Angeles. Their campaigns address environmentally and health hazardous projects that impact marginalized communities. The movement uses coalition-building, community engagement, science-based research, effective communication, legal expertise, and political pressure.	“For us [...] it's a justice issue. And it's also an equity issue. If there is a universal good, we have to start with the most vulnerable, because equity never ever trickles down. It has to start from the bottom”.
'People Not Pozos' (People not wells) campaign	Targeted AllenCo drilling site, which was polluting a low-income, minority community. This had negative health impacts on residents (Cavallaro 2022). Organizing tactics included: Door-knocking to gather data on the various symptoms experienced by residents, followed by making a health report (Andrade et al. 2017) Making an art piece of eight styrofoam heads, each suffering from one of the symptoms caused by the drill site pollution. Organizing a community call-in campaign to the Air Quality Management District (AQMD) Conducting a press conference. This got the attention of Senator Barbara Boxer, the federal head of the environmental committee. SUCCESS: Senator Boxer called on the Environmental Protection Agency to perform an investigation, and the AllenCo site shut down.
'No Drilling Where We Are Living' campaign	Following their success, the STAND-L.A. coalition formalized. Some key factors lead to several more successes: Coalition building and community engagement. Extensive outreach efforts increased participation. These efforts also strengthened the influence of residents (Liberty Hill Foundation 2023). Science-based evidence and effective communication. In 2015, AQMD modified the law. It mandated fossil fuel extraction sites to disclose their chemicals. Activists found that each chemical caused the symptoms they identified in their door-knocking. This strengthened their arguments when communicating the problem (Halpern Ibrahim Interview 2023). SUCCESSES: E&B Natural Resources electrified and enclosed the Murphy drill site to keep toxic fumes out of nearby homes and reduce pollution. Won a resolution prohibiting new oil drilling in the Inglewood oil field (Liberty Hill Foundation 2023; Stone 2023). Influenced legislative changes. For example, Senate Bill 1137 bans new oil and gas wells within 3,200 feet of sensitive areas. It has contributed to significant oil phaseout resolutions in Los Angeles, both at the city and county levels (Gross 2022; Stone 2023).
Major challenges faced by STAND-LA	Oil lobbying to oppose legislative measures Reports the oil industry is employing canvassers to use misleading tactics when gathering signatures to qualify the referendum for ballots (Gross 2022).

Stop Cop City (US)

Summary of project being proposed	Stop Cop City began in 2017 in response to the city of Atlanta's plan to build the biggest police and firefighter training facility in the country. The majority of the funding is expected to come from taxpayers, despite no public consultation on the project. The proposed site is an important green space known as Weelanee forest (Bethea 2023). It comprises the South River, one of the most endangered rivers in the United States due to historical sewage pollution. Historically, this land belonged to the Muscogee Creek Nation before they were displaced by the 1830 Indian Removal Act (Bethea 2022). At the beginning of the 20th century, the land was the site of a low-security prison farm where several accounts of torture and violence against black inmates were recorded (Bethea 2022). Today, the forest serves as an important green space for the residents of the predominantly Black surrounding neighborhoods (Mock 2023).	“Whether the win comes through the ballot, in the courts or in the streets, Cop City must never be built”
Summary of resistance	After the project was announced, the Atlanta City Council solicited a session of public feedback that was attended by over a thousand people and lasted over 17 hours. The majority of people were against the project, but the council still ended up voting in favor of leasing the land to this police facility (Sydow 2023).  Organizing tactics included: Weekly safe space events by community members in the Welanee forest, such as potlucks, reading groups, and teach-ins. The goal was for people across Atlanta to learn about the issue, and connect with the forest.  Direct action in the form of protests all over the city to spread awareness.  A ballot referendum campaign to allow constituents to vote on the issue.   Door-knocking in various neighborhoods to collect signatures. SUCCESS: DeKalb County, being an unincorporated borough of Atlanta, barred its residents from participating in the voting or signature collection process for the referendum. Four county residents took legal action with a lawsuit against the City of Atlanta. They won the right for DeKalb residents to both collect signatures and initiate a new 60-day countdown (Sydow 2023). Activists needed 58,000 signatures from registered voters in 60-day timeframe. They gathered over 116,000 signatures (Franzen 2023).
Major challenges faced by Stop Cop City	Police violence has been a major challenge throughout the campaign. During a protest, activist Manuel Terán (“Tortuguita”) was shot fourteen times by Georgia state troopers (Goldberg 2023). Many protesters were arrested and charged for racketeering and domestic terrorism (Rico 2023). Most recently in November 2023, the coalition planned a peaceful protest and tree planting in the forest, but they were met with physical resistance and tear gassed by the police. At the time of writing the report, the government was delaying the signature approval process. Cop City may not be included on the ballot.

Keystone XL Pipeline (US/CAN)

Summary of project being proposed	Initially proposed in 2008 by TC Energy, the Keystone XL pipeline extension project was designed to increase the transport of crude oil from Alberta’s tar sands to refineries on the Gulf Coast of Texas (Denchak and Lindwall 2022). The pipeline extension project was expected to transport 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day across the Canada-U.S. border.  The pipeline is an example of environmental racism. Its construction would have affected Indigenous communities in Montana and South Dakota (Lindwall 2021). The pipeline’s proposed path was altered to not cross Indigenous reservations in the U.S., However, it still ran the risk of jeopardizing multiple Indigenous lands and important sources for drinking water such as the Ogallala Aquifer, a 175,000 square-mile freshwater system that serves as the main water source for millions of people (Adler 2015).
Summary of resistance	Many grassroots activists, including Indigenous communities and environmentalists, were involved before larger organizers, such as 350.org (Adler 2015). They aided in the organizing of the initial coalition, consisting of national environmental organizations including the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC), the Sierra Club, and First Nations and Native American activist groups such as Idle No More and local landowners (Adler 2015). The project was then resurrected by the Trump administration after a brief win SUCCESS: An initial win for campaigners came in 2015, when then-President Obama rejected a much needed cross-border permit for Keystone XL after years of large acts of civil disobedience and protest along the construction route and in Washington (Henn 2021). NRDC and their partners issued legal petitions, effectively delaying the completion of the project (National Resource Defense Council 2021). Finally, the project was fully put to an end in 2021, as the newly elected Biden administration rescinded a crucial permit for the KXL pipeline, effectively killing the project (Engelfried 2021).

Grassy Narrows (CAN)

Summary of project being proposed	Asubpeeschoseewagong Netum Anishinabek community members of the Ojibwe First Nations Reserve in Grassy Narrows have faced significant challenges due to unregulated mercury pollution in the Wabigoon River. In the 1960s, Dryden Paper Company Ltd. dumped an estimated 9,000 kg of untreated mercury into the English-Wabigoon river system, upstream from Grassy Narrows and Whitedog First Nations. This caused the Canadian Government to ban the consumption of fish from the local river system. 60% of Grassy Narrows and Whitedog’s inhabitants had lost their jobs and were placed on welfare (Charlebois 1978, 205). Community members still remained reliant on the fish as a diet staple, and the resulting mercury poisoning has devastated the health of the community until today (Anderson 2020). Many community members were diagnosed with Minamata Disease, with the most common symptoms being sensory disturbances, poor muscle control (ataxia) and tunnel vision. Researchers also found evidence supporting Congenital Minamata Disease, noticing neurological symptoms developed during fetus development. This resulted in cerebral palsy and intellectual development delays.
Summary of resistance	Grassy Narrows continued to demand fair compensation for mercury poisoning, which had been impacting 90 % of the population, including a mercury care home, quality health care and an environmental monitoring station. By 2021, the Liberal Government agreed to spend $90 million to build and operate the much needed public infrastructure to support those suffering from Minamata Disease. However, by 2023, the specialized infrastructure project has failed to be granted any funding by the Government, citing the soaring cost as a major factor to delays. The people of Grassy Narrows are still fighting for social and environmental justice demanding further compensation, and ending all logging and mining plans in the area. The activists of Grassy Narrows have engaged in many acts of protest and resistance over the years including letter-writing campaigns, hunger strikes, blockades and yearly protests and marches (Saku 2021; Gilson 2019). A major source of support for Grassy Narrows Activists was the formation of alliances with environmental NGOs like Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and other grassroots organizers (Saku 2021, 28). Solidarity and support of non-Indigenous grassroots organizers can be crucial when it comes to funding, direct action, media relations and legal advocacy, evident through RAN’s support during the 2004 blockade. SUCCESS: In 2017, the Ontario government pledged $85 million towards cleaning up the industrial mercury contamination in the Wabigoon River almost 50 years after the pollution had been identified (Porter 2017).

#RightToBreathe/PES (US)

Summary	The 2016 Southport Campaign set out to stop Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) expansion plans for their oil refinery in Southport Philadelphia (Xiao, 2017). PES was the second largest oil refinery in the United States, a well known polluter and violator of the Clean Air Act (Xiao 2017). Philly Thrive, an organization led by Black, disabled, and chronically ill activists (ecoAmerica 2021), was a main organizer for this campaign (Brockmeier 2022). They mobilized local community members and collaborated with other activist networks such as ACTION United (Philly Thrive 2016b). Philadelphia has a deep history of constant pollution dating as far back as 1870 when oil began to be refined in the area (Hanley 2020). The PES refinery could process over 330,000 barrels of crude oil per day and was responsible for over 50% of Philadelphia’s toxic air emissions (ecoAmerica 2021). This is one of the main reasons for the high rates of asthma, cancer, and other respiratory problems amongst Philadelphians (Philly Thrive 2017). The residents who were at higher exposure from the pollution were low-income people of color, making this a case of environmental racism (Philly Thrive 2016a; ecoAmerica, 2021).
Summary of resistance	The campaign started in March 2016 with the first protest against PES’s expansion plans (Philly Thrive 2016b). Through teach-ins and community outreach, Philly Thrive collaborated with ACTION united to mobilize community members to demand their “Right to Breathe” on May 7th (Philly Thrive 2016b).  This coincided with “Break Free 2016,” a wave of resistance to fossil fuels infrastructure by activists across the globe (Philly Thrive 2016b). Throughout the campaign the hashtag #RightToBreathe was used across social media channels, and the image of sunflowers, symbolizing the belief in “a better future for Philadelphia with clean air, healthy families and a green economy,” were seen during the protests (Philly Thrive 2016b). Due to the organization through small working groups, momentum was maintained throughout the campaign (ecoAmerica 2021). More protests and take-overs were planned, including a “Toxic Tour” of the oil refinery on July 26th led by Philly Thrive, ACTION United, LeftRoots, and Global Grassroots Justice Alliance (Philly Thrive 2016c). At this event, frontline activists shared global and local personal stories of how they have been impacted by the fossil fuel economies (Philly Thrive 2016c). SUCCESS: Victory was declared in December when the expansion plans were officially canceled (Thompson 2016). Despite the cancellations, Philly Thrive continued with advocacy and mobilization of more campaigns until PES refinery went bankrupt in 2018 and finally shut down in 2019 after a series of explosions (Hanley 2020). Philly Thrive continues to organize for environmental justice with their campaigns and is now advocating for their “RightToThrive” and mobilizing efforts to repair and clean up 154 years of violence and pollution in their communities (Brockmeier 2021; Philly Thrive).

13 Pueblos (Mexico)

Summary	The Movement of the 13 pueblos started in 2006 to cancel the development plans for the La Ciénega housing units around the area of the Chihuahuita spring in Morelos, Mexico (Arnaut 2010). There was no prior consultation or proper Environmental Impact Assessment for this project (Navarro 2007). The 13 pueblos involved were Tepetzingo, Tetecalita, Temimilcingo, Acamilpa, Pueblo Nuevo, Tlaltizapan, Huatecalco, El Mirador, Benito Juárez, Tetelpa, Santa Rosa Treinta, San Miguel Treinta, and Xoxocotla (Velazco 2018). Most pueblos were made up of Indigenous communities, and campesinos or farmers. The infrastructure to deliver water from the Chihuahuita spring had been previously donated by President Lázaro Cárdenas to provide water to Xoxocotla and the neighboring pueblos back in 1934 (Arnaut 2010). This donation was of major importance as the communities had been struggling from a lack of water access all throughout the Mexican Revolution due to hoarding and misuse by the large haciendas (estates) for the production of sugar cane (Arnaut 2010). Again, access to water was threatened by the La Ciénega housing units, as their planned locations were in the water replenishment areas of the spring (Arnaut 2010).
Summary of resistance	The 13 pueblos came together to resist the construction plans and advocate for their land sovereignty and water access (Navarro 2007). This was possible due to the creation of the consejo de los pueblos or the council of the pueblos. Here, members from each pueblo met every Sunday to learn about each other’s concerns, devise their strategies, and find alternative solutions without government authority (Tabone 2008, 00:20:40). No association with government parties was allowed (Tabone 2008, 00:23:20). For three years, they protested, organized blockades, and counter-reports despite strong government opposition and police brutality (Navarro 2007; Tabone 2008, 00:53:10).  In September of 2007, 153 Indigenous leaders from Canada, the United States, Peru, and other counties in Latin America came together in Xochicalco for the Council of the 13 pueblos and the presentation of their manifesto (Rincón 2023 and Tabone 2008, 00:16:00). The manifesto was made in defense of the land, air, and water, and it outlined the current crisis and visions for the future (Pueblos de Morelos 2007; Casiba 2007, 1:08). It also accused the government and corporations of labeling the areas as “unproductive” to justify construction plans despite the presence of Indigenous and farmer communities (Pueblos de Morelos 2007). SUCCESS: In September of 2008, a court case was presented in the Latin American Water Court where CEAMA (the State Water and Environment Commission) and Conagua were blamed for having authorized construction permits without proper assessment and not taking into account the needs of the surrounding communities (Rincón 2023). In 2009, three years after the movement's conception, the project plans were canceled and the area within a 100 meter radius of the Chihuahuita spring was protected (Rincón 2023).
Major challenges faced	At the Jojutla-Cuernavaca toll booth on June 4th, 2007,\ several people were injured and arrested (Navarro 2007; Velazco 2018). The people of the 13 pueblos were often tear-gassed by police forces, bribed, and some individuals received death threats (Tabone 2008, 00:34:30). They had to fight opposing narratives from the government and Conagua, Mexico’s National Water Commission, that falsely claimed there was sufficient water for the construction of the housing units (Navarro 2007; Tabone 2008, 00:32:40).

Trans Mountain Expansion Pipeline (CAN)

Summary of project being proposed	The Trans Mountain Expansion project (TMX) is a pipeline expansion project that aims to construct a second pipeline, approximately parallel to the current trans-mountain pipeline that transports crude oil from Edmonton to the coast of British Columbia. The pipeline expansion project would triple capacity from around 300 million barrels a day to almost 900 million barrels a day (Trans Mountain 2016). The pipeline expansion project was first proposed by Kinder Morgan in 2013, with an estimated price of just under $5 billion. The Canadian federal government purchased the pipeline in 2018 to keep the project alive after significant resistance and price increases. Since its proposal, the price tag for the project has increased sixfold, to over $30 billion today. Analysts and economists have stated that this expansion project will have a net cost that will be passed on to taxpayers (Cunningham 2020). Beyond the lack of justification for the pipeline expansion project, the project perpetuates other forms of injustice and violence. This includes a lack of proper consultation for free, prior, and informed consent by Indigenous peoples, as well as violence towards women and children due to aggressions from “man camps” that are created to work at these sites (Cunningham 2020). Furthermore, the project violates federal objectives towards a clean energy transition (Canada 2023; Coast Protectors 2023).
Summary of resistance	The expansion project has met fierce resistance from its onset, particularly direct action by First Nations. This direct action in blocking the pipeline construction has been supported by many academics, activists, and environmental organizations. Of note is the creation of a camp by the Tiny House Warriors of the Secwépemc nation that has physically resisted the project by inhabiting areas to be developed. This serves the dual purpose of resisting the expansion project and asserting Indigenous sovereignty on the land (Cunningham 2020). The mobilization against TMX can only be considered a partial win; despite increasing public opposition, increased costs, countless delays, financial problems, and difficulties finding banks or insurers to host the project, its construction has not been halted. It is set to begin operations in 2024 (Cunningham, 2020).
Major challenges faced	The mobilization has faced a major challenge: both the owner and the judge of the project’s feasibility, the Canadian government, is in a favorable position to impose the expansion project and issue construction permits. This poses ethical questions of the democratic processes behind this economically unviable, destructive project. Furthermore, this has also led to repressive monitoring and policing of activists, including a bill that prohibits approaching any of the construction sites (CBC 2019). Over 200 activists have been arrested for their involvement in mobilizations against TMX (Stand Earth, 2023).

Atlantic Coast Pipeline (US)

Summary of project being proposed	The Atlantic Coast Pipeline was a pipeline development project proposed by Dominion Energy and Duke Energy in September 2013. It was designed to transport almost 42 million cubic meters of gas daily from the Utica and Marcellus gas fields in West Virginia to Virginia and North Carolina (Zullo 2016).  The proposed project received an Environmental Impact Statement in late 2016 and aimed at starting construction in 2017, with an estimated cost of $5.1 billion (Zullo 2016). The proposed project would have disproportionately affected predominantly African American communities, as well as Indigenous communities (CBF 2023).
Summary of resistance	Environmental organizations, grassroots groups founded by residents and landowners, and a legal organization (the Southern Environmental Law Centre) converged in voicing public opinion and instigating legal battles against the pipeline. These mobilizations included, but were not limited to: signs on homes, marches, letters to relevant authorities, legal actions, public meetings, and non-violent actions.  A coalition of environmental, conservation, and public advocacy groups signed a letter demanding that rigorous environmental assessment be conducted, citing pipeline engineers and environmental specialists that had stated the inappropriateness of the project (Southern Environmental Law Centre 2021). SUCCESS: A significant legal win was the recognition of the impacts on the Appalachian Trail, and that as a part of the National Parks System, the United States Forest service did not have the authority to issue construction permits (Appalachian Voices 2023; CBF 2023). In July 2020, Dominion Energy and Duke Energy announced the cancellation of the pipeline, citing ongoing delays, the COVID-19 pandemic, legal uncertainty, and increasing costs of construction (Dominion Energy 2020).

Public Power New York (US)

Summary	In 2019, the state of New York adopted the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) which commits to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2040 and at least 70% of electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030 (Pierpont and Eckel 2023, 4). To achieve the CLCPA goals and to ensure that social and economic justice is taken into account while doing so, Public Power New York (PPNY) led a campaign that lasted for approximately 3.5 years (from late 2019 to May 2023) and aimed to pass the Build Public Renewables Act in the state budget (Dawson 2023).  The Build Public Renewables Act will require the New York Power Authority (NYPA)–the largest US public power agency–to not only provide fully renewable energy to citizens by 2040, but also to ensure that economic, social, and racial justice are taken into account while doing so. The Bill will ensure that the energy jobs have high labor standards (Pierpont and Eckel 2023, 5), and that the transition to renewable energy is led by the public sector. The Bill will also ensure that the most polluting oil and gas plants, located mainly in low-income communities of color, will be shut down by 2030, and that energy is affordable for lower income communities (PPNY n.d.b). PPNY is a state-wide grassroots coalition that brings together more than 20 environmental justice organizations, labor unions, and thousands of volunteers to pass the bill (PPNY n.d.e.). On top of advocating for climate justice, the coalition pays serious attention to the intersectional dimensions of the fight for renewable energy, such as racial and economic justice (PPNY n.d.a).
Summary of resistance	The overall strategy of the movement was to put public pressure on politicians and get as many people involved and concerned as possible. For instance, the coalition encouraged people to call and send emails to Governor Kathy Hochul, the politician responsible for passing the bill (PPNY n.d.d). They organized public events to educate the larger public about the state of the current NY energy system, and got members of the movement campaigning for office on platforms that explicitly endorsed Public Power NY (Dawson 2023). However, the most important tactic was forming a state-wide coalition (PPNY n.d.e). Building alliances while many politicians were opposed to the Bill proved to be difficult; involving labor unions was particularly arduous because of the worker’s skepticism of the ​​notoriously anti-union renewable energy industry (Dawson 2023). SUCCESS: After nearly four years of campaigning, PPNY successfully achieved its goal when the New York State legislature decided to pass the Build Public Renewables Act in May 2023 and allocate a budget to the NYPA that would allow for its effective implementation (PPNY n.d.c).

Mi’kmaq Resistance (CAN)

GNL Quebec (CAN)

Standing Rock

Athabasca Tar Sands Resistance

Nitaskinan60

Results and key research findings

Researchers key themes for successful campaigns/movements

• Direct action: most commonly used to successfully overcome government opposition and police repression.
• Legal action and political pressure: most effective for procedural delays, reducing the economic viability of projects, and sometimes, for facilitating the recognition of Indigenous rights and sovereignty.
• Coalition building : both a strategy and a success, leading to new campaigns and/or activist groups, and providing more perspectives and knowledge.
• Community engagement: both a strategy and a success, fostering collaboration, strong community support and diverse campaigns that engage a wide variety of people.

The researchers concluded that a diversity of actors, strategies, and tactics contribute to the effectiveness of a successful intersectional campaign. Direct action, community engagement and building strong, large, and diverse coalitions seem to be the most effective strategies.

HUB team observations of key tactics supporting the success of campaigns/movements

Door-knocking/canvassing. 

Relating to issues concerning community members (i.e. rather than a blanket 'stop climate change', the campaigns addressed a specific project, proposal or law that impacts the local community).

More to come!

HUB team observations for additional lessons for activists

(To come)!

If you have corrections or additional resources to share with us related to this content, you can contact kenzie@lehub.ca.

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