11th Annual Sister Sally Furay Lecture:
Environmental and Social Justice on the US-Mexican Border
Date: May 7, 2007
Time:
6:00 PM - Lecture
7:00 PM - Reception
Location: Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice
Theatre and Rotunda
University of San Diego
Sponsored by:
Trans-Border Institute
Social Issues Committee
Free and Open to the Public
Flyer [ PDF (59.85 KB) ]
Keynote Speaker:
Diane Takvorian
Executive Director
Environmental Health Coalition
PPT Presentation [ PDF (2.58 MB) ]
The lecture focused on the injustices that occur along the US-Mexican border, especially in low income and minority neighborhoods. Air pollution, lead poisoning, and free trade were among the topics that Takvorian specifically addressed in her presentation.
Diane Takvorian has been involved in the struggle for social and environmental justice for nearly 30 years. She is the Executive Director and a Founder of Environmental Health Coalition (EHC), an environmental justice organization in the San Diego/Tijuana region that started in 1980. EHC works to protect public health and the environment threatened by toxic pollution through efforts that create a just society. EHC's community organizing and policy advocacy work with disenfranchised communities has enabled hundreds of residents to develop into community leaders and eliminated many health risks.
Takvorian served as the Co-Chair of the California Environmental Protection Agency's Environmental Justice Advisory Committee from 2001-05 and continues to represent environmental justice communities as a member. The committee adopted historic recommendations to address community environmental justice issues in 2003. Takvorian was recently appointed to the California Global Warming Environmental Justice Advisory Committee.
Takvorian holds a Masters degree in Social Work, with an emphasis in public policy and community organization. She has served on the faculty at San Diego State University School of Social Work teaching graduate and undergraduate courses on community organization and administration.
