The Obligation to Know and the Right to Know: A Relational Approach to Environmental Justice Communication and Datafication

The public's “Right to Know” has been a motivating refrain for the environmental movement from its modern origins. While these policies may be an important component of environmental progress, it is critical to acknowledge the history and ongoing impacts of informating environmentalism. For example, how may information disclosures normalize ongoing harms to communities? How much energy is devoted to tracking the obvious (industries are producing pollution), and how much energy is spent on solutions to those predictable problems? How do data structures replicate power structures and continue to favor industry? Once data are “available,” whose burden is it to use it to clear a burden of proof? Alongside the Right to Know, should we also codify an Obligation to Know? In posing this question, we ask: Who is shielded from knowing about the environmental impacts of their behaviors, and how do patterns of unknowing perpetuate injustices? In this practice-based project report, we detail our process in developing Obligation to Know principles for the cocreation of environmental data justice communication tools through community partnerships in Boston, MA and Denver, CO. We draw lessons from these worked examples and identify limits to using a relational approach for environmental justice communication and datafication.