Environmental justice reporter finds hope in grassroots climate action despite global chaos

After six years covering environmental justice as The Guardian’s first correspondent in this beat, Nina Lakhani offers a sobering yet hopeful perspective on the climate crisis. While 2024 brought another wave of climate disasters and insufficient political responses, her reporting across the United States reveals a powerful truth: ordinary people are driving real change in the fight against environmental destruction.

Lakhani’s work since 2019 has documented the devastating human cost of climate change—families displaced by wildfires, communities flooded by extreme weather, and entire regions grappling with rising seas and food insecurity. These stories underscore an uncomfortable reality that challenges the popular narrative of collective climate responsibility: we are not “all in this together.” The impacts fall disproportionately on marginalized communities who have contributed least to the problem.

However, amid this disparity lies the source of Lakhani’s optimism. Her reporting has revealed countless examples of grassroots organizing, community-led solutions, and legal challenges that are reshaping how we approach environmental problems. From local neighborhoods to international courtrooms, ordinary citizens are taking extraordinary action to protect their communities and planet.

This people-powered movement represents a fundamental shift in environmental activism—one that recognizes both the unequal burden of climate impacts and the transformative potential of community organizing. While global political action remains frustratingly slow, these grassroots efforts demonstrate that meaningful change is possible when communities take matters into their own hands.