Urban Ark Technologies

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Planet Ocean Rights of Nature

CALL TO ACTION: California calls for communities to make their voices heard as federal administration threatens state’s coast

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“California’s coast belongs to all Californians – full stop,” said California Secretary for Natural Resources Wade Crowfoot. “For decades, Republican and Democratic administrations alike have respected the partnership between states and the federal government that has protected our coast while supporting a thriving economy. Yet the Trump administration is singling out California and threatening unprecedented action in pursuit of dangerous new offshore oil drilling. We won’t stand by while the federal government attempts to sideline the people who rely on and care for California’s coast – now is the time to make our voices heard.”…Continue readingCALL TO ACTION: California calls for communities to make their voices heard as federal administration threatens state’s coast

Climate Justice

How many California schools are in the 3,200-foot buffer zone where the state bans new drilling?

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The Trump administration is suing California over a law preventing new oil and gas wells from being located too close to schools, homes and other sensitive sites. The 2022 law, Senate Bill 1137, prevents new drilling within a safety zone of 3,200 feet, a little over half a mile, around schools, hospitals and parks, based on public health recommendations.

In the suit filed in January in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, the U.S. Department of Justice said SB 1137 violates federal law and hampers domestic energy development. “SB 1137 would knock out about one-third of all federally authorized oil and gas leases in California,” said the Department of Justice in a press release. The government’s request for a preliminary injunction stopping the enforcement of SB 1137 is scheduled to be heard on March 20.…Continue readingHow many California schools are in the 3,200-foot buffer zone where the state bans new drilling?

Planet Ocean Sovereignty

California Marine Sanctuaries Face Threats of New Trump-Backed Offshore Oil Leases

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After years trying to realize her father’s dream of designating a 4,543-square-mile expanse of California’s coast and ocean waters as the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, Violet Sage Walker said she is disappointed with the direction the sanctuary’s leaders are taking amid the Trump administration’s threats to open areas for new offshore oil and gas leases. 

“It’s unfortunate that the federal partners and NOAA … are considering prohibited items within the marine sanctuary and protected areas, but it’s not surprising considering what they’ve just recently done, opening up commercial fishing in the Hawaii sanctuaries and protected areas,” Walker, the chairwoman of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council, told Inside Climate News. She nominated the designation of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary in 2015.…Continue readingCalifornia Marine Sanctuaries Face Threats of New Trump-Backed Offshore Oil Leases

Migrant Indigenous

‘If You Speak an Indigenous Language, You Are Treated as Less’: Migrant Indigenous Farmworkers Feel Deportation Threat

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A community organizer and former farmworker talks about the unique pressures on Indigenous migrant farmworkers from Mexico, particularly in California, where they represent a quarter of the agricultural workforce.…Continue reading‘If You Speak an Indigenous Language, You Are Treated as Less’: Migrant Indigenous Farmworkers Feel Deportation Threat

Migrant Indigenous

Voices of California’s Immigrant Indigenous Workers

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On May 1, International Workers’ Day, CBDIO staff, in collaboration with other organizations and community members, participated in the Fresno and Madera marches to honor those who have lost their lives under ICE custody and operations, reaffirm the fight for justice, demand better working conditions, and encourage civic engagement in the upcoming elections. Messages in support were shared in multiple languages to ensure that all communities could be heard. …Continue readingVoices of California’s Immigrant Indigenous Workers

Migrant Indigenous

Report Separates Indigenous Migrants from ‘Hispanic/Latino’ Labels

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“The ongoing invisibility and misrepresentation of Indigenous Migrant communities has consequences for the community…as Indigenous migrants navigate racialized systems that often lack culturally competent services,” said CIELO, an Indigenous women-led non-profit organization that works with Indigenous communities in Los Angeles.…Continue readingReport Separates Indigenous Migrants from ‘Hispanic/Latino’ Labels

The Unheard

US Supreme Court sends North Dakota tribal redistricting case back for review

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The two tribes and three tribal citizens filed suit against the North Dakota Legislature in 2022, arguing that its new legislative map shifted district lines in a way that diluted tribal representation, under Section 2 of the federal Voting Rights Act, which outlaws racially discriminatory voting practices.
The Supreme Court on Monday decided 8-1 to void the appeals court’s ruling.…Continue readingUS Supreme Court sends North Dakota tribal redistricting case back for review

Migrant Indigenous

California Farmworker Communities Win the Right to Be Notified of Pesticide Applications in Advance (originally published on Mar. 26, 2025)

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After decades of pressure from farmworkers and their allies, California launched a statewide system to warn communities before they’re exposed to toxic pesticides. But health concerns remain.…Continue readingCalifornia Farmworker Communities Win the Right to Be Notified of Pesticide Applications in Advance (originally published on Mar. 26, 2025)

Community Identity Housing Justice

Meeting the Housing Needs of Native Communities

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American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities face distinct housing challenges, such as overcrowding, substandard housing on tribal lands, and more limited access to mortgage credit. According to a 2017 study by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), an estimated 68,000 new homes are needed to eliminate overcrowding and replace physically deficient housing. These issues are compounded by complex federal-tribal governance, insufficient funding, and varying needs across different tribal areas. Despite these hurdles, the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act’s (NAHASDA) programs have made significant progress in addressing housing gaps, though challenges such as outdated funding levels and bureaucratic obstacles remain.…Continue readingMeeting the Housing Needs of Native Communities

Housing Justice

As ICE Tears Immigrant Families Apart, California Moves to Keep Them Housed

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State Senator Maria Elena Durazo stands alongside immigrant rights and tenants’ rights advocates to introduce Senate Bill 1243, the Tenant Protections for Immigrant Families Act. SB 1243 creates an affirmative defense and a temporary stay on unlawful detainer actions for impacted tenants and families, whose household members have been abducted by federal immigration enforcement during this period of immense fear, loss, and turmoil.…Continue readingAs ICE Tears Immigrant Families Apart, California Moves to Keep Them Housed

Housing Justice

Mixed-status Families: Many Californians live in households with family members who have different citizenship or immigration statuses

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This article is originally published at: Mixed-status Families | California Immigrant Data Portal Many Californians live in households with family members who have different citizenship or immigration statuses. Mixed-status families, many…Continue readingMixed-status Families: Many Californians live in households with family members who have different citizenship or immigration statuses

Migrant Indigenous

INDIGENOUS MIGRANTS IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY

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Los Angeles County is home to many diverse Indigenous Migrant communities from what is now known as Mexico and Central America however data and reports on Latinx immigrant communities as a whole often obscures and effectively erases these communities in their analysis. A newly released report, “Indigenous Migrants in Los Angeles County” provides an opportunity to learn more about these diverse communities through the work of Comunidades Indigenas en Liderazgo (CIELO), an Indigenous women-led community-based organization, and preliminary research conducted by CIELO and the USC Equity Research Center. Community data gathering efforts such as survey data from CIELO’s outreach events offer a unique opportunity to better understand the diversity of Indigenous Migrant communities throughout Los Angeles County.…Continue readingINDIGENOUS MIGRANTS IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY

Defending Earth's Defenders Sanidad Comunitaria

Leveraging International Policy Forums to Empower Indigenous Earth Defenders in the U.S. and Abroad: the OECD NCP Complaint Process

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The OECD is an international, inter-government organization, comprised of member industrialized nations. It seeks to improve lives by serving as a cross-border policy forum to establish evidence-based international standards and to find solutions to social, economic and environmental challenges. Currently, there are 38 member countries.

The OECD provides a non-judicial complaint system that allows communities to raise concerns when multi-national companies engage in business conduct that causes harm. Because the global economy has shifted towards increasingly large-scale agriculture and the extraction of raw materials, multinational companies drive sectors such as mining, logging, and energy. As these large-scale activities inherently alters the condition of land and its ecosystems, these international business activities significantly impact the rights, health, and survival of Indigenous Communities and wildlife across the globe.…Continue readingLeveraging International Policy Forums to Empower Indigenous Earth Defenders in the U.S. and Abroad: the OECD NCP Complaint Process

Sovereignty

Canada’s Supreme Court won’t hear Wolastoqey appeal of Aboriginal title ruling

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This article is originally published at: Supreme Court won’t hear Wolastoqey appeal of Aboriginal title ruling | CBC News

Private industrial forest land in New Brunswick will remain excluded from an ownership claim by Wolastoqey First Nations after the Supreme Court of Canada turned down an application to hear the case.

It means the New Brunswick Court of Appeal’s ruling from last December is the final word on the issue.…Continue readingCanada’s Supreme Court won’t hear Wolastoqey appeal of Aboriginal title ruling

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