Preliminary Development of the Climate and Racial Justice Scale

Background: The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement has increasingly brought attention to climate change as both a global environmental crisis and human rights issue that disproportionately affects people of color. Climate change is a global crisis that is both an environmental concern and a human rights issue, as communities of color are disproportionately affected. Little research has been conducted on perceptions of the intersections between climate and racial justice, and no scientifically validated scale exists. Method: We developed and tested a Climate and Racial Justice Scale to assess perceptions of this intersection and explore associations with race and ethnicity, climate change concerns, and engagement in environmental and Black Lives Matter activism. Discussion: Initial scale validation was assessed with factor analysis and analyses examining reliability. Results supported a one-factor solution and internal consistency was acceptable. We examined associations between scores on the scale and demographic characteristics, climate concerns, and engagement in activism. Conclusion: Present preliminary findings for a measure can be expanded upon and disseminated to other populations of interest. Findings have implications for targeted education, advocacy, and policymaking.