The Center for Health, Environment and Justice has been on the front line in the fight for environmental health for 37 years. We train and support local activists across the country and build local, state and national initiatives that win on issues from Superfund to climate change.
We Can Help You Win
CHEJ has the tools to help residents fight against toxic threats in their community. We can provide scientific information to make your case, leadership training to build your organization and organize your community, and ongoing coaching throughout the process.
Whether you are starting a new initiative from scratch with volunteers or have been working together for years, CHEJ is there for you. Contact us to find out more.
Love Canal
Our story began in Love Canal, NY, where Lois Gibbs led her neighbors to be protected from 20,000 tons of hazardous waste buried in their backyards. Love Canal was national news and the catalyst for the federal Superfund program.
Armed with lessons about the power of organizing, education and the bold voice of local residents defending their families, Lois launched CHEJ in 1981. We’ve been fighting for a healthier environment ever since.
A Network For Change
Our nationwide network of more than 300 local community groups works locally and at the regional, state and national levels to achieve critical policy impacts around issues like fracking, release of toxic chemicals, climate change, industral waste and more.
The communities we serve are largely rural, low-wealth or working class—the places that typically bear the brunt of environmental degradation. Together, we make a difference.

EPA Ruled Improperly Delayed Racial Bias Probes
It has been ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) improperly delayed investigating pollution-spewing dumps and power plants that disproportionately impact minority communities. This follows a July 2015 suit [...]
The Superfund Sites of Silicon Valley
"Federica Armstrong discovered when she moved to Palo Alto, Calif., that Silicon Valley is not what it seems. The world’s capital of tech innovation prefers to keep its superlatives, good and [...]
A once thriving coal town has turned toxic, and citizens are desperate for help
“West Virginia is one of the most beautiful places in the world. And people are tired of being collateral damage and they’re tired of living in a toxic waste dump,” [...]
#RiseUp2017
#FromProtestToPower
Watch progressive leader and commentator Van Jones make the keynote address during the morning plenary session of the “Rise Up” People’s Action convention in Washington, D.C. on April 24.
See #CHEJShareworthy below for another video from the convention.
SPRING INTO ACTION!
Everyone off the couch, shake the cobweb out of your brain and enjoy the coming [...]
Tell Ben & Jerry’s CEO: Get pesticides out of your ice cream!
Think about it: Ten of 11 samples of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream tested positive for glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s dangerous Roundup herbicide.
The ice cream brand claims its social mission “seeks to meet human needs and eliminate the injustices in our local, national and international communities,” and that its focus is “on children and families, the environment and sustainable agriculture on family farms.”