Metro West Climate Equity

The Towns of Ashland and Natick and the City of Framingham have partnered on a project focused on the intersection of climate change and equity, called The Metro West Climate Equity Project.

The project will take place from Fall 2021 to 2023 and has three goals:

Build lasting relationships with Metro West Environmental Justice (EJ) communities that will facilitate long-term engagement on climate change resilience and action
Learn from the community about how they experience climate change and what their climate priorities are, and update local plans and direct funding to reflect findings.
Increase city and town staff’s knowledge of climate equity through training and improve their capacity to support and engage Environmental Justice communities

Support for this project comes from the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) program, which “provides support for Massachusetts cities and towns to begin the process of planning for climate change resiliency and implementing priority projects."

Questions? To learn more about the Metro West Climate Equity Project contact Sharon Ron at sron@mapc.org.

Map of Environmental Justice Areas: Ashland, Framingham, and Natick

Map of EJ neighborhoods in Ashland, Natick, and Framingham. EJ neighborhoods are more likely to be home to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC); lower-income households; and people who are non-native English speakers.

Why are we focusing on Environmental Justice (EJ) communities?

Residents of communities predominantly home to Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and low-income individuals disproportionally experience the worst effects of climate change, including poor air and water quality, extreme weather, and the rising cost of essential resources. Their experience and the strategies that they have developed to cope with these impacts can lead to more effective long-term solutions.

The fact that Environmental Justice (EJ) communities face higher exposure to the harms of pollution and climate change is not by accident.

Decisions made by government entities and other institutions have exacerbated the threat of the safety and well-being of the most vulnerable communities. For example:

Forcing Indigenous communities to leave their homes,
Providing weak workplace protections for jobs held mostly by BIPOC and immigrants, and
Inducing residential discrimination, and having low-income housing near toxic facilities, highways, and within wetlands

Prioritizing climate action in EJ communities and the solutions identified by those most impacted is critical to achieving a future where all people are protected from environmental harm and benefit from the transition to a greener future.

Climate Conversations

In 2022, a team of resident researchers, called the Community Climate Liaisons, came together to talk about climate change and the challenges they face. This team lead two phases of Climate Conversations:

Climate Conversations Survey – Shared in-person and online, the survey explored how climate change is impacting residents and local climate action

Climate Action Conversations – Liaisons gathered friends, families, and colleagues to talk about local climate action and resilience. Conversations focused on 4 priority areas:

Emergency planning
Equitable clean energy & energy efficiency programs
Making it easier to get around without a car
Improving access to lakes/ponds to cool off

The Climate Conversation outreach focused on connecting with residents living in Environmental Justice communities, whose residents are on the frontlines of climate change and who often experience barriers to participating in municipal processes.