Housing Justice is Climate Justice

WE ARE CURRENTLY FACING A HEALTH EMERGENCY

Since MARCH 2020, the COVID-19 crisis has greatly disrupted the daily life, employment, business, and health of Miami-Dade County residents. This pandemic has placed all of our citizens in harm’s way and is quickly becoming an economic crisis for many households. this emergency has and will continue to exacerbate the housing crisis that residents of South Florida have been fighting against for years.

Miami-Dade County’s low-income and working class residents need immediate assistance, as well as long-term solutions. This is not the first time Miami-Dade County has faced such a challenge, and it will not be the last. For example, due to climate change’s impacts on rising temperatures, mosquito-borne diseases will become more prevalent in South Florida. Therefore, we demand the rapid implementation of the recommendations outlined in this report.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS
In July 2019, over 75 Miami-Dade County residents represented their neighborhoods at the Miami Housing & Energy Justice Congress, where over 40 demands related to neighborhood development and energy justice were voiced. This kicked off a seven month revision process collecting public feedback through community meetings. As a result, the Housing Justice in the Face of Climate Change Report was collaboratively developed by over 200 Miami-Dade County residents and stakeholders.

At its core, the Miami Climate Alliance is a coalition of organizations and individuals working to prioritize climate justice in South Florida. The Miami Climate Alliance seeks to achieve equity in resilience by building urgency around community well-being, strengthening networks of community members and organizations, raising awareness of climate change and sea level rise as threats to all forms of justice, and directly supporting those working to implement solutions in frontline neighborhoods now.