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The author describes Tanzania's Covid-19 response as being characterized by a shift from initial preventive measures to a state of denial led by President John Magufuli. While the government initially formed a National Task Force and applied disaster management guidelines, it later revoked restrictions, declared the country 'coronavirus-free' in June 2020, and promoted unproven home remedies. The document highlights a lack of transparency, with the government failing to meet World Health Organization requests for data and suppressing media and opposition critics who called for lockdowns and scientific consultation.

The document asserts that Black Americans are disproportionately affected by climate change and environmental hazards, noting a historical lack of attention to environmental racism in the mainstream environmental movement. It highlights a significant funding disparity, where environmental justice non-profits receive only slightly more than one percent of the funding awarded to environmental non-profits by 12 national foundations. The author calls for the climate movement to dismantle structural racism by allocating more resources to organizations led by Black individuals and prioritizing diversity and inclusion within advocacy spaces.

The Union of Concerned Scientists argues that the US federal government has lacked science leadership since 2017, citing delayed appointments and reduced staffing at the OSTP. To remedy this, the document proposes a series of immediate actions for a new administration, including appointing a nationally respected scientist as OSTP director, restoring federal advisory committees, and establishing interagency working groups to address COVID-19, environmental justice, and scientific integrity. It emphasizes the need for a science-based budget and stronger whistleblower protections to prevent political interference in research.

The Union of Concerned Scientists argues that marginalized communities in the US face disproportionate environmental and health harms, which are exacerbated by systemic racism within federal agencies. The document recommends that agencies make equity-based analyses mandatory for significant policies, strengthen scientific integrity, and dismantle internal racial biases. Specific calls to action include rescinding certain EPA and CEQ rules, increasing the number of health and safety inspectors, and improving the meaningful participation of frontline and tribal communities in rulemaking processes.

Earthjustice has developed the Better Lead Policy toolkit to shift the approach to lead poisoning from reacting to blood tests to proactive primary prevention. The toolkit includes a Policy Generator for rental inspection programs, a Cheat Sheet for program elements, and a Deep Dive section featuring examples from over two dozen communities. The document highlights the disproportionate impact of lead poisoning on Black and Latinx children and cites the success of prevention programs in Rochester, New York, and Cleveland.

The South African Water Caucus (SAWC) issued a series of letters between April and August 2020 to the South African government, including the Minister of Water and Sanitation and the President, demanding emergency water and sanitation services. The correspondence highlights a critical lack of access to clean water and soap in numerous rural and informal settlements, which the SAWC argues increases the risk of COVID-19 transmission and violates constitutional rights. The document includes detailed annexures listing specific communities in the Western Cape, Limpopo, Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, and Free State suffering from dry taps, unreliable water tankers, and inadequate sanitation.

The Clean Air Task Force criticizes the EPA's decision to rescind methane pollution standards for the oil and gas industry, noting that the 2016 rules had reduced emissions by 330 million metric tons of CO2e since their inception. The statement highlights that the move removes federal controls for the country's largest industrial methane source and weakens leak detection and repair requirements, particularly in the transmission and storage segment. Furthermore, the EPA's new policy position requires a 'significant contribution finding' before regulating air pollutants under the new source performance standard program, which the author claims prevents the agency from addressing hundreds of thousands of older pollution sites. The document also links oil and gas air pollution to over one million childhood asthma attacks annually.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) argues that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) must strengthen its scientific integrity to protect public health, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The document details instances of political interference, such as the suppression of reports and restrictions on scientist communications, and recommends systemic reforms. These include improving whistleblower protections, dismantling systemic racism within the agency, ensuring independent science in decisionmaking, and making scientific integrity policies more accessible and transparent.

The Union of Concerned Scientists reports that safeguards for independent government science in the US have broken down, particularly under the Trump administration, leading to the suppression of research and retaliation against scientists. The report recommends that Congress codify scientific integrity (SI) policies into law and that agencies appoint non-political SI officials, implement transparent peer review, and establish safe whistleblower protections.

The author highlights several 2020 court rulings that overturned Trump Administration environmental rollbacks, emphasizing that the U.S. EPA and Bureau of Land Management must prioritize science and public health over industry costs. The text argues these legal wins are critical for protecting marginalized communities, particularly Black and brown people and Tribal lands, from pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

The South African Water Caucus (SAWC) is demanding urgent government intervention to provide water and sanitation to over 200 communities across South Africa. The letter highlights systemic failures in water distribution, the inadequacy of the Department of Water and Sanitation's hotline, and the severe health risks posed to vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 pandemic. It provides a detailed annexure of affected areas in the Western Cape, Limpopo, Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, and Free State, citing issues such as dry taps, polluted water sources, and a lack of soap and sanitation products.

RMI urges the California Energy Commission (CEC) to implement a statewide all-electric new building code in the 2022 cycle. The document asserts that delaying this requirement until the 2025 cycle would result in 3 million additional metric tons of carbon emissions by 2030 and over $1 billion in unnecessary spending on gas infrastructure. It highlights that buildings are the primary source of premature deaths from air pollution in California, causing over 6,000 deaths annually, and that an all-electric code would support public health, especially in disadvantaged communities.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) proposes a managed reopening of South Africa's economy that prioritizes worker safety, social protections, and state-led economic transformation. Key recommendations include democratizing workplace health and safety, expanding income support through a universal Basic Income Guarantee, improving public health and education infrastructure, and implementing a proportionate fiscal stimulus to reverse austerity measures.

The author contends that the White House has intentionally failed in its duty to inform the public by attempting to block scientific testimony from experts on both climate change and COVID-19. These actions are described as a consistent pattern of science suppression that leaves the American public vulnerable and unsafe, thereby posing a national security threat.

The Public Health Association of South Africa (PHASA) calls for a 'healthy recovery' from COVID-19 that avoids returning to unsustainable economic patterns. The group argues that air pollution from coal-fired power stations, particularly in the Mpumalanga Highveld, exacerbates respiratory diseases and coronavirus mortality. PHASA advocates for a just energy transition to renewables, the closure of coal mines, and the active involvement of the health sector in the Presidential Climate Change Commission to address the intersecting crises of pandemics and climate change.

A coalition of health and environmental organizations is advocating for New York State legislation to ban PFAS in food packaging, citing severe health risks, the availability of safer alternatives, and the disproportionate impact on vulnerable communities.

The Institute for Economic Justice argues that the South African Supplementary Budget of 24 June 2020 betrays the promised R500 billion COVID-19 rescue package. Instead of the promised amount, the budget provides a net increase to non-interest spending of R36 billion, representing less than 1% of GDP. The document details shortfalls across seven key areas: social security, job protection, health, wage support (TERS), municipal support, tax relief, and the credit guarantee scheme. It highlights that much of the R145 billion targeted for COVID-19 is funded through reprioritisations and the suspension of baseline allocations, while planning a further R230 billion reduction in spending over two years.

The July 2020 poll of 600 likely voters in Maine shows strong support for suing oil and gas companies for climate-related damages, with 69% of statewide respondents supporting such action post-messaging. A significant majority of respondents (80% statewide) expressed concern about current climate impacts, primarily citing health risks. The data indicates that providing information about the industry's historical knowledge of climate change and its local economic impacts increases the likelihood of support for legal accountability.

The document examines Africa's response to COVID-19, highlighting the tension between implementing lockdowns to protect fragile health systems and the resulting economic risks due to high informality and poverty. It notes that while some countries adopted rapid mitigation strategies and leveraged experience from previous epidemics, systemic gaps in water access and health funding leave the continent vulnerable as infection rates accelerate.

The document outlines the initial spread of COVID-19 across Africa, noting that while mortality rates were initially lower than in other regions due to a youthful population, community transmission accelerated rapidly by mid-2020. It highlights the uneven impact across countries, the heavy socio-economic toll of containment measures, and the global scale of the crisis, which the IMF described as the worst economic fallout since the Great Depression.