The Evolution of Environmental Justice and Trends: From Social Activism to Mainstream Movement

Abstract

The concept of environmental justice has developed tremendously in the very short spell of its recent history. From its very humble beginnings in the United States of America, where it was borne out simply as a movement against environmental racism, it has evolved on to cover not just the protection of the right to all individuals to a healthy and safe environment but also now covers all other forms of social concerns. Recent concerns have broadened its scope to include other racial and ethnic groups and now also covers disparities associated with gender and age. The concept of environmental justice has also transcended the borders of the US to, Europe as a whole, Asia, and Africa, mutating into different forms and accommodating other similar concerns from continent to continent and taking into consideration peculiar social situation of the different localities where the concept has been used. This paper traces the journey of this concept and predicts that the scope of the environmental justice is bound to continue to grow in the future and forecasts that it would evolve and respond to new social concerns in different geographical locations

Keywords: Environmental Justice, social activism , natural resources