The odds might feel insurmountable, but that’s never kept us and community leaders from fighting for – and securing – major advancement. In just the past few months, we successfully supported Pixley residents with shutting down plans for a polluting hydrogen plant in their community, despite federal and state level backing for the project. And these past few years, residents, partners, and our team have succeeded in securing millions from the State budget towards community priorities even amidst brutal budget deficits. We have hundreds of other reasons to have hope for the future in spite of the difficulties, and here’s what we know about the challenging road ahead.

1. Californians have a right to live in safe and healthy homes.

Every summer, outdoor workers labor under triple-digit heat and go home to uncooled, uninsulated houses in the San Joaquin and Eastern Coachella Valleys, unable to find respite from potentially lethal temperatures. Each year, Inland California sees more days of triple digit heat, yet there is still no requirement in California that rental housing be able to maintain a safe indoor air temperature. In the year ahead, we will partner with community residents from the most impacted regions and allied organizations from across the state to fight for safe indoor air temperatures.

2. Climate resilience programs and policies must be effective and equitable.

Now more than ever, local and state efforts must lead the way in both addressing climate change directly and mitigating its harshest impacts. In partnership with community leaders from throughout the San Joaquin and Coachella Valleys, we will inform critical climate policy so that its implementation redounds to the health and well-being of the most vulnerable communities. We will fight for policies, programs, and investments that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and related air pollution; protect drinking water quality, reliability, and affordability; and build critical infrastructure that will equip communities to withstand climate impacts from increased heat to flooding to drought. The future of the San Joaquin and Coachella Valleys depends on sound climate policy and programs. The development and implementation of sound climate policy and programs depends on the expertise and engagement of Californians most impacted by climate change.

3. The land use plans and transportation networks that form the very backbones of our towns and neighborhoods are severely out of date.

Neighbors are coming together to build communities that reflect their vision – parks and sidewalks to boost mental and physical health; transit and basic amenities to boost economic opportunity, and affordable and healthy homes for all income groups – while simultaneously fighting the ongoing proliferation of industrial facilities, polluting energy production, and heavy duty trucks. We’ll continue to work with community leaders and community groups to make neighborhoods and cities the physical foundations for a thriving San Joaquin Valley and Coachella Valley.

4. An inclusive decision-making table is more important than ever.

Regardless of who’s in office at the local, state, or federal level, real change only happens when residents organize and come together on the issues that impact their local communities. In the years ahead, we will support grassroots leaders in taking on major efforts to overhaul local transportation spending and land use planning norms, fight for affordable and safe drinking water and housing, and inform effective and equitable climate change policies and programs. In order to do all that (and more), we will continue to ensure access to decision-making for residents who know best what their communities need and know how impactful it is for their communities to work together.

That’s exactly why we started our Stronger in Community campaign to ramp up our organizing efforts in the year ahead. This will include trips to the Capitol to connect Inland California community leaders with decision-makers, regular mobilizations to public hearings to make change at the local, regional, and state level, and lots of community meetings to do the work of base building and planning in between. In order to do this, we will need the support of partners like you who fuel community organizing efforts and are a critical piece of every community win. 

5. We will take care of each other.

No matter what comes in the years ahead, this team, our friends and partners, and the persistent community leaders with whom we partner will continue to look out for one another, show up for one another, and protect one another. 

This work does not happen without the support of people like you who are committed to justice, equity, and community resilience. Your partnership is what makes all of the above happen in 2025 and beyond. 

Will you contribute to Stronger in Community and support residents in the fight for environmental justice and climate resilience? 

With gratitude, strength, & resolve,
Your Friends at Leadership Counsel for Justice & Accountability