About Us

“When we remove any species from its habitat or disrupt any of its neighbors…we may be dooming that species to extinction….”

— Edward C. Fritz, Realms of Beauty: The Wildnerness Areas of East Texas

Climate Justice Texas was created to spark dialogue among young people and transform it into actionable hope for the future in our East Texas communities and beyond.

The world now is facing challenges like never before: rising sea levels, global warming, and increased storms have pushed the topic of “climate change” to the forefront of global dialogue. However, in much of Texas, this dialogue is nowhere to be found….we want to change that!

Here in Jefferson County, we are home to the two largest oil refineries, the largest LNG (liquid natural gas / methane gas) buildout in the world, and an entire corridor of petrochemical factories that continues to expand without any dialogue about public safety or land impacts.

Surprisingly to some, in addition to being a hot bed of Oil & Gas development, we are also home to one of the most biodiverse places on the planet, the Big Thicket —which is 2nd only to the Amazon Rainforest in terms of how many special plants, insects, fungi, and animals that it has. We have incredible, rare carnivorous plants, populations of sea turtles, are a migratory corridor for birds, and are a safe haven for many native populations that have been pushed to the brink of extinction.

At Climate Justice Texas, we hope to empower ourselves and our friends with all of the knowledge about their environments’ past, present, and future so that they can become better leaders and stewards of the land in their own lives and their own communities.

Membership FAQs

  • Our main CJT cohort is made up of young adults, which we technically qualify as 18-35 year olds, but we are community-inclusive and everyone is welcome to join! Members or attendees under 18 may have to have a parent or guardian with them or sign a release form, depending on the event.

  • Yes! Totally free. Welcome aboard! :)

  • We are based in Beaumont, Texas, but we host events in and around Jefferson County, Hardin County, and Tyler County. We hope to expand in the future to include more parts of Texas :)

  • You might sometimes hear our team members refer to Climate Justice Texas as its acronym “CJT.” This is just because it’s easier and makes us feel ~cool~.

Location & Land Acknowledgement

 

We are based in Jefferson County, Texas but also explore and grow the natural beauty in surrounding counties like Hardin, Tyler, and Orange Counties.

Native Land Acknowledgement: Coast

We give grace and gratitude to the Karankawa and Atakapa-Ishak tribes, who previously flourished along the coastline. Read more about them here and here.

Native Land Acknowledgement:
Piney Woods

We give grace and gratitude to the Alabama-Coushatta tribe, which calls the forested land of the Big Thicket their home. Read more about them here.