Cristina Carvajal had no intention of saving the planet – at least not in her job. Back in her native Colombia, she had trained as an engineer and started a career in the oil industry. “That’s where the jobs were,” she recalled, but soon found it wasn’t for her.
“All my life I’ve seen myself as an environmental activist,” said Carvajal, 52. “I just realized that I didn’t want this, that it went against my belief in the conservation of nature and natural resources.”
When she moved to the United States more than 20 years ago—first to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, then to Janesville and Madison—she divided her time between caring for her three children and volunteering at environmental organizations.
But she saw few other Latinos doing the same, and even fewer citing the prosecution. “There are many environmental groups, but not many are led by Latinos and for Latinos,” Carvajal said. She set out to change that, convinced that climate change is an urgent problem that can only be solved if everyone gets involved.
Two years ago, she made those efforts official by founding Wisconsin EcoLatinos, a nonprofit dedicated to mobilizing Latinos in South Central Wisconsin to protect the environment and advocate for environmental justice. With a handful of paid outreach coordinators and a bevy of volunteers, Carvajal works to help local Latinos learn everything from recycling electronics to applying for tax credits to make their homes more energy efficient.
On April 22, the organization celebrated Earth Day with its first annual conservation fair at Warner Park, despite 30-degree temperatures and intermittent hail. The group has also partnered with the Latino Academy of Workforce Development to offer new leadership training on recycling and air pollution, designed to help community members protect the environment, their neighbors and colleagues.
In another collaborative project, the organization has partnered with the University of Wisconsin-Madison to encourage Latinos to use the Wisconsin Community Climate Solutions digital platform, which empowers participants to develop programs to improve air quality, increase treetops and to cool their neighborhoods.
Carvajal spoke to the Cap Times about what it takes to give people of color their fair share of the $370 billion in clean energy investments authorized by the 2022 Inflation Mitigation Act and why she wants to teach Latinos to kayak.
What kind of work exactly do Wisconsin EcoLatinos do?
We work in four main areas. First, environmental literacy and sustainability, because for many people, following all these issues is just not their focus. For example, many people just don’t really understand what climate change is.
Our other main focus is on pollution and health because we need to raise awareness about the impact of contamination. There are communities that are disadvantaged and more exposed to pollution than others, compounding their vulnerability. That brings environmental justice into the equation.
And we’re always trying to raise awareness and educate people about how we’re going to adapt to climate change and make the transition from the fossil fuel economy to the clean energy economy. A huge investment in clean energy is being made with the Inflation Reduction Act and it is very important that BIPOC communities benefit from these credits and tax refunds that come with this Act. If we don’t involve our communities in the energy transition, how can we demand participation?
So, for example, helping people find out about and apply for loans and discounts for installing solar panels or upgrading their water heaters?
Exactly. Helping people navigate through all this information. All of these laws are very complex and helping people navigate these resources is important in order to actually benefit from them.
What gap is your organization filling?
We normally assume that people know about climate change and environmental protection, but that is not the reality. Most people may have heard about it but don’t really understand what’s going on. Most people don’t understand how serious the problem is, how global warming is here and how it will affect everyone’s lifestyle. How will we engage our community to protect their health and well-being? There is a language barrier. There may also be a socioeconomic barrier.
And if it’s not among people’s priorities, they won’t be looking for that information, so outreach is important. We try to involve people: we reach out to them and let them know that this is important.
How you do that?
We hold many workshops and events to convey these issues. We also have several partners, such as UW-Madison and the Latino Academy (of Workforce Development). We also try to do special events to get people excited about it. For Latino Conservation Week in July, we’re hosting a Kayak Learning Event on Lake Monona. There is a dual purpose here. One is that people can feel comfortable and enjoy green space and outdoor sports, but we will also teach about stormwater management. We want to enjoy clean water, right? So we must learn to protect them. Everything is connected. All the small actions in our lifestyle have a big impact on the environment.
Tell me about the Earth Day event you held.
It was our first environmental protection fair. We had other organizations there like UW Extension, Wisconsin Salt Wise and the DNR. All information related to dealing with the environment. We had people teaching about recycling, composting, and proper disposal and recycling of electronics. MGE brought some electric cars with them. RENEW Wisconsin brought some sample solar panels to teach about renewable energy.
We had information in Spanish and we also had translators. Some of the students from Raza United at Madison East High School have volunteered to help with mass. They served as translators and helped clean up the park. It’s a shame we had such bad weather, but we’re committed. We want to make it an annual event.
How has the response been from the people you’re trying to reach?
It was excellent. People love to hear about the environment. you want to learn You want to join. The interest is definitely there.
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