With a team of more than 100 legal experts on staff and more than 600 active cases, Earthjustice is holding accountable those who threaten to harm our environment and break our bedrock environmental laws.

More than 1,200 students assembled a five-story globe on the National Mall in Washington D.C., to mark the 25th anniversary of Earth Day in 1995. (Joyce Naltchayan/AFP via Getty Images)

50 years of Earth Day

It’s been 50 years since the first Earth Day. We look back at five decades of groundbreaking political power that won us foundational environmental laws like the Clean Air Act and the National Environmental Policy Act — and at all the threats this progress now faces.

GIVE THE EARTH A GOOD LAWYER
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Commemorate Earth Day 2020 by ensuring that the earth has a good lawyer now and in the future.

DONATE NOW

Oceanic whitetip sharks were historically one of the most abundant sharks in the world’s oceans, but due to both U.S. and international fishing pressure, the population has declined significantly. (Paul Souders/Getty Images)

We’re suing to protect endangered sharks
Oceanic whitetip sharks have roamed the oceans for millions of years and were historically one of the world’s most abundant sharks. Now they’re on the brink of extinction due to harmful fishing practices that accidently catch and kill thousands of them each year. We’re suing under the Endangered Species Act to force the government to protect this imperiled species.

Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency has signaled it will try to stop states from leading efforts to clean up our air. (Graphic by Rob Chambliss/Earthjustice)

Trump administration aids polluters by taking aim at clean cars
In a move that would dramatically increase air pollution, the Trump administration recently finalized its plans to weaken clean car standards. The changes benefit the fossil fuel industry while harming public health and will cost Americans billions at the pump.

Residents of California's Inland Empire are saying “enough” to the endless tide of warehouse expansions in their community. (Photo illustration by Rob Chambliss/Earthjustice)

How warehouse workers are fighting back against harmful conditions
As COVID-19 puts online shopping into overdrive, workers and warehouse communities are demanding stronger health protections and increased corporate responsibility. Earthjustice is supporting these efforts by suing the federal government and demanding a halt to construction of a new warehouse facility in Southern California — an epicenter of the warehouse industry.

Volunteers at a nonprofit in Washington, D.C., distribute free hot meals during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Building community amid COVID-19
When the federal government fails to respond, we must work within our communities to support ourselves, and especially our vulnerable neighbors, during the COVID-19 crisis. Here are some ideas our staff shared to help your community through difficult times.

“Do you expect someone who has fallen ill or has a sick family member to be on the phone today? What about the healthcare workers, the parents who are busy trying to home-school their children? … The EPA has suspended enforcement of environmental laws — yet the agency somehow expects communities to submit comments and participate in these hearings, amid the pandemic.”

— At the EPA’s phone-in public hearing on weakening safeguards against toxic coal ash, Earthjustice attorney Lisa Evans reads a statement excoriating the agency.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Strengthen protections for farmworker children
Farmworkers are some of the least protected workers in the country — and some farmworkers are children. Pediatricians have understood for decades that children are more vulnerable to health-harming chemicals than adults. Urge your representative to support the Children’s Act for Responsible Employment and Farm Safety today.

TAKE ACTION

Demand the transition to 100% clean energy
The 100% Clean Economy Act of 2019 would ensure everyone benefits from our transition to a clean energy economy. Urge your member of Congress to co-sponsor this important piece of legislation.

TAKE ACTION

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