Ok, so 2020 is the news cycle that won’t quit. 

It is definitely time to Accentuate The Positive. And we are blessed to have very positive news for you right now.  

Due to the incredible generosity of the Stephen M. Silberstein Foundation, which responded to the SJSU Environmental Justice Graduate Research Fund campaign with a gift of $20,000, we exceeded our original target goal, with a bit of time left in the campaign. 

We are inspired by this momentum, to dream just a bit bigger. In addition to supporting as many of our current eligible MS projects as possible, we increased our goal to raise enough research funds to also help recruit and support an even more diverse cohort of new MS students to start in the 2021 academic year. 

In order to change the status quo, we believe that, all together, the ENVS@SJSU community can match the Silberstein Foundation’s extraordinary gift to Environmental Justice research in the graduate program. We increased our target to $33,000 and we are nearly 90% of the way there! 

Why donate now? Because every day we need more documentation of environmental racism and injustice, more solutions to increase environmental equity, and more trained professionals who come from and care about underrepresented communities. Because we all want to come together for the greater good, to contribute to the solutions of our social and environmental problems. And because we all need more Positives in this chaotic time. 

If you haven’t already made a gift, please help us today. Thank you to everyone who has already donated, and please note that you can still help by sharing this donation opportunity widely. Let’s get to $33,000 by this Sunday, October 11. Together. 

Thank you so much, 

Rachel O’Malley

Professor and Graduate Program Coordinator

Department of Environmental Studies

Dear supporters, 

Good things can happen in 2020. 

This new Environmental Justice Graduate Research Fund idea in the Department of Environmental Studies @SJSU was a product of the September 8, 2020 #scholarstrike supporting #BlackLivesMatter. The imaginations of current grad students in the ENVS department were captured by the idea, and they came together in record time to produce the video you see here, despite the pandemic. With your help, just 16 days later, we are now 1/3 of the way to our $20,000 goal. Thank you to everyone who has made a gift so far!

I am confident that together we can raise the rest in the next 16 days, to make the fund successful by our October 11, 2020 target. As I have said before, in this time of turmoil, I insist on remaining optimistic about the small things, over which we have direct control.  

Please don't forget to:

• Make your gift today if you have not already done so
• Ask your employer about a matching gift 
• Pass the word to friends who might be interested in helping
• Share our campaign link on your social media: power.sjsu.edu/ENVS_EJResearch

Our department is well-positioned to serve students of color asking hard-hitting questions about environmental racism and environmental justice, with a committed faculty and subject expertise that rivals much wealthier departments. Your donation will help ENVS at SJSU to recruit, serve, and graduate African-American, Indigenous and other students of color who do not have the ability to “self-fund” their degree at the Master’s level to offer financial support for their research.  

Thank you so much for helping us change the way the world works. Even in 2020. 

Warmly, 

Rachel O'Malley, Professor and Graduate Program Coordinator

Department of Environmental Studies

San Jose State University