NEAN Launches Urgent Baton Rouge Campaign to Aid Displaced Workers, Combat Environmental Threats
NEAN is fighting pollution and unemployment in Black communities—restoring work, health, and hope.
Baton Rouge, La. — The National Environmental Action Network (NEAN), a nonprofit organization rooted in the environmental justice movement, has announced a sweeping set of initiatives targeting two of the most pressing crises in the Greater Baton Rouge area: mass displacement of federal workers and dangerous levels of environmental contamination in Black and Latino communities.
Founded in Eastern New Orleans in 1995, NEAN expanded into Baton Rouge in 1997. Under the leadership of its founder and CEO, Lewis Ross Brown, DSc, the organization is now mounting an aggressive response to what it calls “a dual emergency”—the sudden unemployment of scores of Afro-American and Latino federal employees and contractors, and the toxic legacy of pollutants like PFAS and PCBs in the region’s soil, water, and air.
“We’re witnessing the fallout of a federal rollback that has left many Black and Brown workers out in the cold,” said Brown, an environmental toxicologist. “Simultaneously, these same communities are shouldering the burden of environmental negligence that threatens their health and their future.”
NEAN is coordinating job placement efforts for displaced federal employees and contractors by connecting them with remote and hybrid positions at national and international consulting firms. These roles offer flexible terms and above-market pay, with workers empowered to set their hourly rates and work with multiple firms.
But economic recovery is only part of the battle.
In its environmental work, NEAN is spearheading investigations into the presence and health impacts of PFAS ("forever chemicals"), PCBs, heavy metals, and synthetic pesticides in predominantly Afro-American neighborhoods. The organization is also hosting virtual training sessions on how to safely remove these substances from water systems and how communities can stay compliant with the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act at all levels of government.
“This is not theoretical science,” Brown said. “This is survival. We’re equipping people with the knowledge and tools to protect their children, their homes, and their water.”
Under the direction of Shamira A. Brown, PhD, NEAN’s Chief Financial Officer, the organization is also investing in educational equity. It now offers free virtual tutoring in biology, chemistry, physics, math, history, and English for high school and college students. In addition, NEAN has developed a grant-writing and proposal research course designed to help individuals and grassroots groups secure sustainable funding for community work.
Recognizing the deepening food insecurity crisis, NEAN is mobilizing resources to fund church-based food banks and restore Meals on Wheels programs for the elderly and disabled.
This comprehensive response strategy marks one of the most ambitious undertakings in the organization’s 30-year history. NEAN’s leadership is urging government officials, foundations, and community leaders to join in a coordinated response before the crises deepen further.
“This is not a moment for performative allyship or delay,” said Brown. “We need action, investment, and collaboration now. The people of Baton Rouge deserve clean air, safe water, meaningful work, and dignity.”
For more information or to support NEAN’s mission, contact Dr. Lewis Ross Brown at (703) 594-2302 or via email at toxicology_genius99_2019@outlook.com. You may also reach Dr. Shamira A. Brown at (703) 594-2191 (office), (571) 697-8383 (cell), or by email at shamira316_99_2003@yahoo.com.
