Earth Day Panel to Focus on Environmental Justice and Black America

Note: A complete video recording of the Earth Day panel discussion is available via YouTube.

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (April 20, 2021) -- North Carolina A&T State University is presenting a special virtual panel discussion in recognition of Earth Day this Thursday, April 22, beginning at noon: “Environmental Justice, Equity and Sustainability: Earth Day Imperatives.” The event is free and open to the public (see registration information below).

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator and N.C. A&T alumnus Michael S. Regan will provide opening remarks, and alumna Tracy Lloyd McCurty, J.D., executive director of the Washington-based Black Belt Justice Center and a leading advocate for the $5-billion appropriation for Black farmers included in the recently passed American Rescue Plan, will moderate. Panelists include:

• Dr. Walter Hill, dean of the Tuskegee University College of Agriculture, Environmental and Nutrition Sciences and a USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hall of Fame member
• Dr. Deidra Hodges, associate professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Texas-El Paso, and an expert in solar energy and other renewables
• Dr. Arnab Bhowmik, assistant professor of Soil Science/Soil Microbiology, North Carolina A&T, and an expert in sustainable agriculture and greenhouse gas emissions
• Kay Brandon, MSW, chair, Solid Waste Management Commission, Greensboro, and co-founder of Citizens for Economic and Environmental Justice
• Michael Carter, Jr., a graduate of the North Carolina A&T College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, an 11th generation farmer and part of the fifth generation to run his family’s century farm, Carter Farms in the Piedmont Region of Virginia

Students, faculty and staff are especially invited to join us for a lively discussion followed by an audience Q&A, both of which will focus heavily on environmental justice as it connects to communities of color and to historically black colleges and universities. For faculty interested in drawing from the discussion for future classroom use, a recording of the panel will be made available following the event.

Register for this free, virtual Zoom event now at http://bit.ly/EarthDayImperative.