Environmental Justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people in environmental policies, regardless of race, ethnicity, or income. For Tribes, environmental justice is deeply tied to the protection of sacred lands, natural resources, and cultural heritage. Tribes often face disproportionate environmental burdens, such as pollution, resource exploitation, and climate change, due to historical marginalization and inadequate consultation in policy decisions.
Achieving environmental justice means recognizing Tribal sovereignty, honoring treaty rights, and addressing these inequities to ensure sustainable, culturally respectful solutions for Tribal communities.
The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to host a series of free regional summits on the topic of environmental health in Indian Country. Each summit featured Tribal leaders, environmental health practitioners, subject matter experts, and federal partners engaging on topics relevant to each region. The summits intended to connect people from different professional backgrounds and Tribes, communities, federal agencies, Tribal organizations and state and local entities to address various environmental health and environmental justice issues affecting Indian Country. Each summit was designed for participants to:
Superfund sites are polluted locations requiring long-term cleanup of hazardous material contaminations. Superfund sites disproportionally impact people of color and low income communities, including 19 Superfund sites and 3 proposed Superfund sites on the National Priorities List on Tribal lands, and within 10 miles of Tribal land there are 141 sites and 8 proposed sites. See our Story Map to learn more.
The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) invites Tribal leaders, health and public health professionals, policy
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Registration for NIHB’s 2025 National Tribal Health Conference is now open! Join us this September in Arizona for an experience where Culture is Medicine & Community is Healing.
