Climate Justice and the State: Lessons from Stockton, California

In the past decade, as environmental justice activist-scholars have engaged with critical social theories including the Black Radical Tradition, decolonial scholarship, urban political ecologies, and abolitionist thinking, they have debated whether the movement’s longstanding state-focused strategies can truly bring about a just and sustainable future. In the context of this debate, as well as the Trump administration’s evisceration of environmental and EJ regulations, this article investigates how state funding has affected climate justice advocacy in Stockton, California. Stockton is in many ways typical of environmental justice communities: racially diverse, working class, and facing multiple forms of toxicity and climate precarity. I argue that, in a region generally ignored by philanthropy, state funding has galvanized community-based climate justice advocacy, bringing organizations focused on kindred social justice issues into the climate space, drawing national organizations to the region, and providing opportunities for paid work in advocacy and decarbonization. This has led to substantial community engagement as well as tangible results. However, although this funding has become essential to implement just and sustainable alternatives, it cannot be used to oppose new, dangerous land uses. Thus, state funding provides some mitigation and improves local green infrastructure amid worsening environmental and climate conditions. And yet, by raising organizational capacity, providing tangible, observable benefits, and engaging thousands of local residents, Stockton’s past decade of climate justice advocacy may lay the groundwork for future movement building.