forbidden word(s): EEJ – Energy and Environmental Justice

energy

energy, noun

plural – energies

1. the capacity for vigorous activity; available power.

   I eat chocolate to get quick energy.

   Synonyms:

   potency, force, vigor

2. an adequate or abundant amount of such power.

   I seem to have no energy these days.

3. Often energies. a feeling of tension caused or seeming to be caused by an excess of such power.

   to work off one’s energies at tennis.

4. an exertion of such power.

   She plays tennis with great energy.

5. the habit of vigorous activity; vigor as a characteristic.

   Foreigners both admire and laugh at American energy.

   Synonyms:

   push, zeal

6. the ability to act, lead others, effect, etc., forcefully.

7. forcefulness of expression.

   a writing style abounding with energy.

8. Physics. the capacity to do work; the property of a system that diminishes when the system does work on any other system, by an amount equal to the work so done; potential energy. E

9. any source of usable power, as fossil fuel, electricity, or solar radiation.

energy, scientific

1. The capacity or power to do work, such as the capacity to move an object (of a given mass) by the application of force. Energy can exist in a variety of forms, such as electrical, mechanical, chemical, thermal, or nuclear, and can be transformed from one form to another. It is measured by the amount of work done, usually in joules or watts.

2. See also conservation of energy kinetic energy potential energy Compare power work

Usage

What is energy? Energy refers to available power or motivation to move, as in Jada found that getting enough sleep each night gave her the energy to live each day.Energy also refers to power that is used with exertion or force, as in Monique brought energy to the team, leading them to win more games.In physics, energy is the power or heat that is created when something moves, is burned, or is exerted. It is typically represented in two forms: potential and kinetic energy. Potential energy is power that is stored in something as it sits still or is unburned. For example, coal contains a large amount of potential energy that is released when the coal is burned. As the coal burns, that potential energy becomes kinetic energy, energy related to the particles in the system.Energy is a common word with several other senses related to power or motivation.Example: Darryl found out the hard way that cell phone batteries lose their energy in the cold.

Other Word Forms

• hyperenergy noun
• self-energy noun

Etymology

Origin of energy

First recorded in 1575–85; from Late Latin energīa, from Greek enérgeia “activity,” equivalent to energe- (stem of energeîn “to be active”; en- ², work ) + -ia -y ³

from — Definition of energy. (n.d.).

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environmental

environmental adjective

1. of or relating to the totality of things, conditions, influences, cultural forces, etc., that surround and shape the life of a person or a population.

   Investigators in the study will examine possible associations between aggressive prostate cancer and exposures to environmental stressors such as discrimination, early-life adversity, and segregation.

2. Ecology. of or relating to all the external conditions, such as air, water, minerals, and other organisms, that surround and affect any given organism, often specifically relating to human interaction with these conditions.

   She took 11 lake samples to identify the fish communities present there and the defining environmental factors, like dissolved oxygen, pH, and vegetation.

   Agriculture is now a dominant force behind many environmental threats, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and the degradation of land and fresh water.

3. of or being art that surrounds the viewer or involves the viewer’s participation, often on a grand scale and outdoors.

   Our programs include an exhibition of global art, public lectures on birds, and a collaborative outdoor installation of environmental art.

Usage

What does environmental mean? Environmental means of or relating to all the things that surround us and influence our lives, as in For some people, environmental stressors included how crowded a room is and how loud the noise is.In ecology, environmental also means of or relating to all external conditions that surround an organism, such as air, water, and minerals. When someone talks about climate change and its environmental impact, they mean that as the average temperature of the Earth changes, it affects the environment, such as through soil erosion, flooding, and more.Less often, environmental describes something that surrounds the viewer or encourages their participation, as with some outdoor art.Example: The environmental damage this project will cause might be unreasonable.

Other Word Forms

• environmentally adverb
• interenvironmental adjective
• nonenvironmental adjective
• nonenvironmentally adverb
• preenvironmental adjective
• proenvironmental adjective

Etymology

Origin of environmental
environment ( def. ) + -al ¹ ( def. )

Related Words

• coincidental
• inconclusive
• indirect

from — Definition of environmental. (n.d.).

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justice

justice, noun

1. the quality of being just; righteousness, equitableness, or moral rightness.

   to uphold the justice of a cause.

2. rightfulness or lawfulness, as of a claim or title; justness of ground or reason.

   to complain with justice.

3. the moral principle determining just conduct.

4. conformity to this principle, as manifested in conduct; just conduct, dealing, or treatment.

   Victims of rape and sexual assault have the right to the evidence they need to seek justice.

5. just treatment of all members of society with regard to a specified public issue, including equitable distribution of resources and participation in decision-making (usually used in combination).

   Environmental justice means that all people, regardless of race or income, have the right to a clean and healthy environment.

   A group of moms in the Bridgeton area are advocating for health justice for those living around the landfills.

   When we speak of climate justice, we demonstrate our sensitivity and resolve to secure the future of poor people from the perils of natural disasters.

6. the administering of deserved punishment or reward.

7. the maintenance or administration of what is just by law, as by judicial or other proceedings.

   a court of justice.

8. judgment of persons or causes by judicial process.

   to administer justice in a community.

9. a judge on a higher court, especially a Supreme Court.

   the nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court.

10. a minor judicial officer or magistrate.

11. Also called Justice Department.  Justice. the Department of Justice.

1. bring to justice, to cause to come before a court for trial or to receive punishment for one’s misdeeds.

   The murderer was brought to justice.

2. do justice,

   1. to act or treat justly or fairly.

   2. to appreciate properly.

      We must see this play again to do it justice.

   3. to acquit in accordance with one’s abilities or potential.

      He finally got a role in which he could do himself justice as an actor.

justice, cultural

A figure in painting and sculpture that symbolizes the impartiality of true justice. The figure of Justice usually appears as a blindfolded woman with a scale in one hand and a sword in the other.

Other Word Forms

• justiceless adjective

Etymology

Origin of justice

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin jūstitia, equivalent to jūst(us) just ¹ + -itia -ice

from — Definition of justice. (n.d.).

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On January 21, President Trump signed an Executive Order revoking all prior executive orders that had served as the foundations for environmental justice (EJ) initiatives by the federal government. These included President Clinton’s 1994 Executive Order 12898, which required federal agencies to identify and address “disproportionately high and adverse impacts” on “minority populations and low-income populations.” As a result of that order, federal agencies, with guidance from the Council on Environmental Quality, had developed practices for integrating EJ considerations into their decision making, especially when carrying out responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Also revoked, in a broad Executive Order issued January 20, was President Biden’s E.O. 14096, which established a whole-of-government approach to EJ implementation in all governmental planning, public engagement, and research activities, making each agency responsible for “achieving environmental justice [as] part of its mission.” President Trump also revoked President Johnson’s 1965 Executive Order 11246, which had required federal contractors to provide equal employment opportunity, and the January 20 Order further directed the Office of Management and Budget to terminate all “‘diversity,’ ‘equity,’ ‘equitable decision-making,’ ‘equitable deployment of financial and technical assistance,’ ‘advancing equity,’” and similar “mandates, requirements, programs, or activities, as appropriate.”

Following these directives, the Administration closed most of U.S. EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice and Civil Rights and its EJ units in all ten regions (retaining a small headquarters staff for external civil rights reviews); abolished the Department of Justice’s Environmental Justice unit within the Environment and Natural Resources Division; and cancelled and attempted to claw back federal grant funds allocated to environmental justice-oriented activities in the states, including infrastructure-related grants. EPA also took down and rendered unavailable its EJScreen, which had enabled regulators, applicants, and members of the public to analyze pollution and demographic data when making decisions. EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance (OECA) issued a memorandum in March prohibiting EPA enforcement officials from using any historical data from EJScreen in “any enforcement or compliance activity.”

So, what is left of federal environmental justice?

Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act remains in effect, and prohibits discrimination by recipients of federal funding. However, in 2001 the Supreme Court held in Alexander v. Sandoval that “disparate impact” cases may be brought only by the federal government itself and not by private plaintiffs. This makes much of EJ implementation entirely dependent upon the Department of Justice and federal agency plaintiffs. Some other legal authorities have been used by EPA to protect minority communities, such as cases seeking to end imminent harm; however, DOJ announced last month that it had dismissed a case against a Louisiana chemical manufacturer located in a minority neighborhood, specifically citing the Trump executive order ending environmental justice activities.

Because of the recent Executive Orders, federal agencies are for the first time in thirty years no longer explicitly tasked with advancing EJ. Indeed, such activities are now presumptively suspect, given the terms of the new Executive Orders. This is a major change. EPA had defined environmental justice as “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.” This definition is no longer referenced on federal websites, which have been scrubbed of such concepts. Nevertheless, federal agencies under their own statutes have at least some duties of nondiscrimination, and arguably some affirmative duties to any communities suffering ongoing pollutant burdens. Many of these were compiled in EPA’s 2022 Legal Tools to Advance Environmental Justice. These provisions, many of them statutory, are still in effect.

Likewise, the demise of CEQ’s EJ Guidance, and the pending elimination of the CEQ NEPA regulations by the Administration, will not remove federal agencies’ statutory responsibilities under NEPA to understand the affected environment, predict environmental impacts of a proposed action and its alternatives, and identify mitigation measures. Indeed, these requirements were reinforced by Congress’s 2023 amendments to NEPA, in the Fiscal Responsibility Act, and much NEPA case law is likely to remain persuasive even after rescission of the CEQ regulations. NEPA still governs major federal actions, including permit decisions by federal agencies. An environmental impact review lacking demographic information, or assessing new impacts without reference to pre-existing impacts on a community, would undoubtedly violate any version of NEPA analysis a federal agency might choose to advance.

It is worth noting, as well, the sometimes-overlooked policy provisions of NEPA. NEPA Section 102(1) provides that, “to the fullest extent possible: (1) the policies, regulations, and public laws of the United States shall be interpreted and administered in accordance with the policies set forth in this Act.” Among those policies, enumerated in Section 101(b), are to “(2) assure for all Americans safe, healthful, productive, and esthetically and culturally pleasing surroundings; (3) attain the widest range of beneficial uses of the environment without degradation, risk to health or safety, or other undesirable and unintended consequences; [and] (4) preserve important historic, cultural, and natural aspects of our national heritage, and maintain, wherever possible, an environment which supports diversity and variety of individual choice.”

While the Supreme Court has held that these policies cannot be enforced by a private plaintiff against an unwilling federal agency, nonetheless the obligation to take these considerations into account remains part of every agency’s mandate. A federal official could cite to these statutory provisions in lieu of any reference to the now-revoked Executive Orders.

Environmental justice is, perhaps, not entirely dead in its federal incarnations, but may be on life support. EPA’s OECA prohibits EPA enforcement officials from considering whether persons affected by potential violations or pollutant discharges are “minority or low-income populations.” But the same memo does allow enforcement officials to consider “physiological vulnerabilities” of affected “community members” as well as disparities in the levels of specific pollutants in one area relative to others.

from — What’s left of federal environmental justice? | Environmental Law Institute. (n.d.). Retrieved March 14, 2026

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Environmental Justice, Climate Justice, and Energy Justice—What Do They Mean?

Published Jan 28, 2025

March 14, 2025
Hudson Valley, New York

image: word on the street © Holly Troy 2026

This is one word you can’t say in the new Trump Administration. See a comprehensive list at the Forbidden Words Project.

“How can we have intelligent or difficult conversations if we can’t even use the words, the most basic unit of meaning?” said Jonathan Friedman, Sy Syms managing director of U.S. Free Expression Programs. “We’re now living in a country where the government has decided that a sweeping array of everyday terms will now be erased and forbidden in government agencies, websites, or even scientific research proposals. These prohibitions on language are utterly chilling, and will impede efforts to research real world problems and advance human knowledge.”

from — Connelly, E. A. (2025, December 22). Federal Government’s Growing Banned Words List Is Chilling Act of Censorship. PEN America.

Climate Science Legal Defense Fund

see Silencing Science Tracker — silencingscience.org