How Heather McTeer Toney is redefining climate action for the next generation of leaders
Elected one of the youngest Black female mayors in the United States before serving as administrator of the EPA’s southeastern region, Heather McTeer Toney is now leading a movement to make sure that everyone is encouraged to be part of the millions of the green jobs of the future. Heather knows what it’s like to feel left out of the environmental movement, despite being affected by climate change every day and leading efforts to mitigate its effects. Today, she’s working to ensure that communities on the frontlines of climate change are recognized for their climate expertise and that community knowledge is central to climate solutions. We all need to “embrace climate justice as the social justice issue of our time,” she says. Where do you fit? After you listen to this episode, you’ll see opportunities you never imagined.
Degrees: Real talk about planet-saving careers · Yesh Pavlik Slenk, Heather McTeer Toney
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Show Notes
Elected at age 27, Heather McTeer Toney knows what it means to be a public servant. She was the first African-American, first female and the youngest to serve as mayor of Greenville, Mississippi from 2004-2012. In 2014, President Barack Obama appointed her as regional administrator of the EPA’s Southeast Region, at eight states the largest EPA region in the country. Currently, Heather is vice president of community engagement for the Environmental Defense Fund. She has appeared on numerous news outlets and in publications, including The New York Times and the Washington Post. She is the author of the forthcoming book, “Before the Street Lights Come On: Black America’s Urgent Call for Climate Solutions”, in stores Earth Day 2023.
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Resources
- Heather McTeer Toney, EDF
- Heather McTeer Toney PBS Brief But Spectacular: Centering Black Leadership in Climate Change Solutions
- Moving Past Stereotypes: Climate Justice IS the Social Justice Issue of Our Time, Heather McTeer Toney keynote speech, Bioneers, 2019
- Black Women Are Leaders in the Climate Movement
- Environmental Inclusivity: Heather McTeer Toney on Social and Climate Justice, Bioneers. “Our voices are required at this moment. It’s not an option. It’s a requirement.”
- People of color are more concerned than whites about climate change (survey results): Which racial/ethnic groups care most about climate change?
- Ten years later, BP oil spill continues to harm wildlife — especially dolphins, National Geographic, April 17, 2020
- Article by Trish Kenlon, founder of Sustainable Career Pathways: 18 sustainability fellowships for students and working professionals
Book Giveaway
To win a copy of Speed & Scale, rate and review Degrees: Real talk about planet-saving careers on Apple Podcasts, Podchaser or Spotify. Take a screenshot of your review and share it with us on Instagram @environmental_defense_fund. Use the hashtag #DegreesPodcast. We’re giving away up to five books per episode!
Who makes Degrees?
Yesh Pavlik Slenk is Degrees’ host. Amy Morse is our producer. Podcast Allies is our production company. Tressa Versteeg is senior producer; Rye Taylor is our audio engineer; Elaine Grant is CEO of Podcast Allies and Tina Bassir is project manager. Our music is Shame, Shame, Shame from Yesh’s favorite band, Lake Street Dive. Degrees: Real talk about planet-saving careers is presented by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
How to find Yesh
Follow Yesh on Twitter at @yeshsays, and stay up to date with us on Instagram @environmental_defense_fund.
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