Abstract

Scientists have accurately predicted and warned with growing urgency of the severe impacts to people and the environment from human-induced climate change. Certain communities are bearing the brunt of these impacts due to years of historic inequities created and maintained by governments, including the State of Oregon. Public agencies can act as changemakers by prioritizing these frontline communities as they move Oregon toward a more equitable, climate-adapted future.

The Oregon Health Authority engaged Better World Group and Estolano Advisors, in partnership with the Oregon Department of Forestry and the Department of Land Conservation and Development, to lead interagency staff through a series of trainings and workshops to develop a Climate Equity Blueprint. The engagement consisted of two level-setting workshops focused on equity basics, and four equity-lens workshops where participants worked collaboratively to identify State equity needs and priorities and to craft an outline of the Blueprint content. Members of the Oregon Environmental Justice Task Force, external environmental justice stakeholders, as well as the Interagency Workgroup on Climate Impacts to Impacted Communities (established by Executive Order 20-04 and convened by the Governor’s office) all provided feedback on drafts of the Blueprint as part of the development process. This Climate Equity Blueprint is a high-level critical thinking tool to help state agencies center equity at the forefront of their climate adaptation work, not as an afterthought.