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In their introduction, Vermeylen's argument for a particularist and decolonial approach to justice through a recognition of plural ontologies and epistemologies that decenters Western liberal discourse and its theory of justice. How does bringing the lens of coloniality into environmental justice literature alter our visions of energy futures? Can we make appeals to environmental justice without recourse to liberal theories of individual rights and property ownership? More specifically, I am wondering how our team can study and address this dynamic plurality of ways of understanding and experiencing in/justice in this site, and how can we engage this plurality in productive ways? What axes of difference and inequality should we be looking for/at (race, gender, class, sexual orientation, citizenship, housing status, etc)? If the Anthropocene is coloniality by another name, how can we foreground this in our approach?

The authors productively place three bodies of theory in conversation, abolitionist theories, urban political ecology, and decolonial theory, to rewrite the intellectual trajectories of EJ as extending the legacy of the Black Radical Tradition. What are our intellectual and political genealogies as students and researchers of the quotidian anthropocene? What genealogies are we pushing against? Drawing from their examples of spaces and historical moments of interracial solidarity, what kinds of coalitions do we see ourselves partnering with and contributing to as (largely?) newcomers to the activism in Austin?

In this fascinating review, the authors show how environmental justice is reproductive justice (following the water protectors at Standing Rock) and how this intersection reshapes understandings of the environment, embodiment, and exposure. I was particularly interested in the concepts of social and cultural re/production, and how we might think about this in light of Austin's rapid gentrification. They discuss an intersectional approach as a multi-scalar approach, from climate change to chemical exposure in the home - and I think this could be extended to a inter/multi-generational approach to justice (esp given our focus on renewables). The authors show how the RJ framework rethinks the individualism of reproductive choice as the right to conceive and bear children in conditions of social justice and human flourishing - then how does the current energy system (and future energy transitions) negate or create these conditions, and for whom? If we think about biological/cultural reproduction, how do we also incorporate the concept of reproductive labor into our analysis? Finally, I think they make an important point about the harms of documentation, and it would be great to hear everyone's thoughts (Esp those who have participated in earlier field campuses) on what the goal and ethics of our knowledge production are?

Walsh's piece gives us a concise history and geography of environmental racism in Austin, by drawing our attention to how ineequality is written into city law and urban planning. The ongoing legacies of segregation have shaped social life from access to public services to access to recreational spaces. Given the foundations of environmental racism in zoning laws and land use regulations, so succinctly highlighted by Walsh, how does/must the process of energy transition address these issues? Can there be zoning for justice, and what would that look like? In what way can our work at the field campus contribute to the existing work being done by orgs like El Pueblo and PODER?

The film centers around Camp Lejuene, a Marine Corps base in Jacksonville, North Carolina. The camp experienced contaminated water from about 1957 to 1987; the wells contained 240-300 times the allowed amount of volatile organic materials. The film follows the struggles of individuals who lived in Camp Lejuene during this time to receive information, compensation, and recognition for what they experienced. While many individuals are interviewed and discussed, the film specifically focuses on Jerry Ensminger, a former Marine Corps Master Sgt. for almost 25 years. Ensminger lost his daughter, Janie, to pediatric leukemia while living on the base. He is one of many parents and former residents who were directly effected by the contaminated water. The VOM's in the water included TCE, PCE, and benzene, all known to cause cancer and childhood defects.  

1) Current criteria surrounding clinical depression: While most of us hold an idea of what depression is, physicians have been given the task of specifically categorizing this nuanced disease. Also called "major depression", clinical depression is the prolonged sensation of low mood during almost all times/activities. These sensations must be present for at least 2 weeks and be persistent across daily activity in order to be considered major depression

2) CBT: Cognitive behavioral therapy is the current widely used model for psychosocial intervention. It focuses on the patient developing coping strategies to aid in emotional regulation, curb unhelpful cognitive patterns, and seek personal solutions

3) Vignette: Never heard of this word before. The term originally referred to small, pleasing sketches, views, engravings, photographs, or illustrations. However, the term is used here to describe a story of patient care. The quick snap-shot is a far-cry from the typical encyclopedia given to health care providers about a patient; it acts as a small, short tale depiction of the scenario, the intervention used, and the outcome. 

Individuals who have been involved in a traumatic event are considered a vulnerable population, especially those who have been involved in something like a sexual assault. Those who have been victimized often have very little knowledge of the services available to them or the nuances of the systems with which them must interface. Thus, these individuals (after coming off a severe emotional and physical trauma), must then navigate a complex system that often feels biased towards the accused. This report summarizes their experiences and the shortcomings of this system. 

1) Fukushima's nuclear safe guards followed the current accepted nuclear regulations. In addition to having back-up generators and short-term batteries to support the reactors during power failure, ownership had extensive emergency plans for tsunamis. These were executed and creative solutions were utilized with necessary. This then begs the question as to how such a well-prepared facility experience massive devastation.

2) Japan is known to be a first-world nation constantly innovating and exploring new technology, with an advanced economy and high emphasis on education. Dr. Schmid refers to members of the Japanese government as "scientifically trained, technologically savvy elites." While Dr. Schmid acknowledges nuclear energy to still be a murku field, Japanese officials represent the individuals most capable of making informed, knowledgeable decisions about nuclear facilities. This only further emphasizes her assertion that a set, elite organization needs to be created to handle nuclear emergencies.

3) While several organizations exist to discuss nuclear power on an international level, there is no entity which serves as a governing body over nuclear facilities. Nuclear emergencies very quickly spread from single-nation disasters to international events. Although there are many internationally recognized policies and guidelines, there is no body to ensure these are followed. Moreover, no single nation or organization at the present time has the fiscal capabilities or specialized knowledge to aid during nuclear disasters.