Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
Arizona Interfaith Power & Light is actively working to build relationships that are centered in justice and equity within the human family as well as with all of the natural world. We must strive together toward this sacred goal.
As advocates for climate justice, we commit to working against systemic racism; ending both the historic disenfranchisement of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, and racially-rooted economic and health disparities; and dismantling structures of racial and economic marginalization and colonialism.
In the United States, the effects of the climate crisis are felt first and worst by front-line communities of color and low-income people. It’s critical that we connect the dots between climate and racial justice in order to truly build communities that are equitable for all. Black, Brown, and Indigenous people are more likely to be killed by police than white people. At Interfaith Power & Light, we believe that taking bold and just action on climate change means seeking justice for the lives of our Black brothers and sisters. Read the statement from our AZIPL Executive Director: link.
We have much to learn from our indigenous neighbors who have lived on these lands long before most of us arrived. There are 22 federally recognized tribes in Arizona. AZIPL acknowledges that we work within the unceded territories of the Southwest Native nations. Our office is on the traditional land of the Tohono O’odham and Pee-Posh (Maricopa), past and present. We commit to resisting erasure of Indigenous histories, following Native leadership, and centering tribal voices.
Our diverse religious and spiritual traditions call us to work for systemic change and a more just society that embraces differences based on religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, and physical ability. Together we will work to reverse paradigms of oppression of humans and the natural world as we build a thriving, inclusive, and equitable future on behalf of all who inhabit this good Earth.