Jessica Tovar

I come from an environmental justice community. I grew up near a bunch of different polluting facilities, including gas-fired power plants and electricity transformers, alongside a myriad of wires, diesel trucks, and crematoriums. In my work, I’ve come to recognize that the polluting industry benefits off the backs of poor communities and communities of color.

Organizing with the Local Clean Energy Alliance, I’ve learned to communicate a vision of an energy system that is not harmful to people, nor to anyone within the community where energy is produced. To us, energy democracy is about participation in designing the energy system we want to see in our communities – one that actually works for us, rather than hurting us. It’s about understanding and weighing in, to ensure we transition this system into a democratized structure that is accessible to all kinds of people: to renters, to people historically shut out from clean energy, and to poor folks.

We can govern ourselves and our energy system. I’m tired of our communities losing. But this time, we’re not going to lose.