EP 3: OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND
Episode 3
Community Advocate Ken Houston gets personal about the rise of illegal dumping in Oakland, California
Piling up.
Illegal dumping is skyrocketing in urban areas across the United States inflicting grave economic and environmental injustices on the cities most vulnerable populations.
In this week’s episode you’ll meet Ken Houston, a passionate third generation resident of Oakland, California with 30 years experience in the construction industry. Ken’s lifelong commitment is to restore the quality of life for impacted communities, and in the process, provide jobs for formerly incarcerated individuals.
Tune in to hear Ken’s story which takes us into the heart of Oakland and opens our eyes to the harms of illegal dumping on low-income communities of color and the unhoused.
Don’t forget to subscribe/follow to People Over Plastic on all major podcast apps and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @peoplexplastic, happy listening!
Resources
To learn more about Ken’s work, check out the Beautification Council. You can Venmo @BeautificationCouncil to support their work.
Ken’s fight against illegal dumping has been featured on ABC 7 , CBS News, and KTVU.
As mentioned on the show, race and income are the greatest determinants as to whether you will live near plastic production and waste disposal facilities. These facilities pollute the air, pollute the water, and pollute the soil of nearby communities, which are almost always low income households, unhoused populations and black, Latino and indigenous neighborhoods. The truth is, there is no safe place to produce toxic plastics or dispose of our waste. This is why community recycling advocates are working to eliminate the production of unnecessary and toxic plastics and hold producers responsible to recover their products for recycling. To learn more about the history and impact of Illegal dumping, check out the following resources:
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Season and episode cover artwork by Greg Dubois @marvelgd
