2008 Damu Smith Environmental Health Achievement Award

Leadership comes in many forms and from many different communities. The Damu Smith Environmental Health Achievement Award  recognizes cross-cutting collaborative work that has enhanced or increased understanding of economic security, ecological conservation, culture or health by 1) developing leadership, building movement, or engaging youth; 2) partnering across differences; 3) achieving on–the–ground results; 4) funding equitably; 5) promoting respect by addressing racism, sexism and other oppressions through communication and education; 6) diversifying membership, workforce, or board; 7) modeling positive structural changes based on evaluation and accountability procedures.

In 2008, the Environment Section was pleased to present Mr. Hilton Kelley with the Damu Smith Environmental Health Achievement Award!  Mr. Kelley has served as the sole line of defense for his West Side African-American community, a group of neighborhoods proximate to the fence-line of a huge petrochemical manufacturing & storage complex: Shell-Motiva, Huntsman, Valero, BASF, FINA et al.  For the past 10 years, he has organized, educated and networked his community into the national web of environmental justice organizations, collaborating with such groups as the Chemical Weapons Working Group, Citizens League for Environmental Action Now

(CLEAN), T.e.j.a.s. (Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services), Global Community Monitor, the National Bucket Brigade Coalition, the Environmental Integrity project and many more. Mr. Kelley is an indefatigable campaigner, a scientifically literate environmentalist, a staunch fighter for social justice, a positive thinker and a unifying force in his community around what have been highly contentious environmental health issues.  Congratulations Mr. Kelley for this wonderful recognition!