Supporting climate justice and worker-led wildfire recovery in California
“If we don’t take care of Mother Earth now, what are we leaving our children?” asked Anayeli Rodriguez, a resilience worker with North Bay Jobs with Justice.
In communities like Sonoma County, California, where wildfires are a pressing reality rather than a distant threat, this question is increasingly urgent. Years of extreme fire seasons have reshaped landscapes, displaced families and forced communities to adapt to hotter, drier conditions.
As the threat of wildfires grows, reducing wildfire risk and protecting the environment becomes ever more vital for communities seeking resilience. North Bay Jobs with Justice (NBJwJ), a grassroots coalition of more than 30 labor and community organizations, stands at the forefront of prevention and recovery efforts, equipping immigrant and Indigenous farmworkers with the skills to protect their livelihoods and the land they call home.
Land restoration and climate mitigation techniques have become a cornerstone of wildfire prevention across Sonoma County. By learning how to use prescribed fires and other natural methods, farmworkers—or resilience workers as NBJwJ calls them—are reducing fire intensity and protecting ecosystems in the process. These resilience workers, many of whom are immigrants from Mexico and Central America, are already the backbone of the region’s agricultural industry, supporting Northern California’s multibillion-dollar wine industry through their labor. As wildfire mitigation expands, these same workers are increasingly called upon to do physically demanding, skilled ecological work under dangerous conditions.
Too often, this labor is undervalued, underpaid or carried out in ways that harm both workers and the land. NBJwJ is challenging that model by organizing at the intersection of economic, racial and climate justice. Their approach is straightforward but powerful: by “centering the voices and leadership of working families and building real worker power through direct action and solidarity,” a truly just and resilient future is possible.
Since 2020, CDP has awarded two grants to North Bay Jobs with Justice to support organizational capacity building and worker-led campaigns for a just recovery from wildfires. This funding enabled NBJwJ to strengthen its partnership with farmworkers by reducing wildfire risk through expanded outreach to affected workers and facilitating cleanup and rebuilding efforts focused on climate adaptation and mitigation.
In 2023, NBJwJ received a $250,000 grant from the CDP California Wildfires Recovery Fund and Disaster Recovery Fund to provide training and job opportunities for immigrant and Indigenous farmworkers. This initiative aimed to build community resilience while creating good jobs that offered family-sustaining wages and a deep respect for workers’ traditional ecological knowledge. CDP’s funding enabled North Bay Jobs with Justice to train two cohorts of workers, complete a wildfire-adapted landscaping certification program, and launch hands-on ecological restoration projects that directly benefited 41 individuals and impacted an estimated 3,000 people.
This grant also funded salaries for two additional staff members to strengthen coordination with partner organizations and worker leaders. That expanded capacity not only positioned the organization to secure two major public grants totaling nearly $2 million, but also supported North Bay Jobs with Justice in providing workforce development opportunities to the County of Sonoma, including the training highlighted in the video below.
“We appreciate CDP’s willingness to take risks and support projects in early stages so that we can develop programs and leverage additional philanthropic funds and public dollars,” said Max Bell Alper, executive director, North Bay Jobs with Justice.
CDP’s investment played a critical role in unlocking these additional resources, enabling the organization to expand its training program for both cohorts into a comprehensive 18-month curriculum.
As climate change accelerates, the demand for resilience workers will continue to grow. North Bay Jobs with Justice is responding to this challenge by investing in worker-led pathways that promote long-term sustainability and worker power. By supporting immigrant and Indigenous workers in leading wildfire mitigation efforts and advocating for improved working conditions and living wages, NBJwJ keeps resources within the community, fosters grassroots leadership and ensures that those most affected by climate change are actively shaping the solutions.
While wildfire adaptation is often framed as an environmental issue, NBJwJ emphasizes that wildfires and the individuals who address them exist at the intersections of climate, labor and racial justice. By organizing farmworkers, valuing Indigenous knowledge and promoting fair and sustainable practices, North Bay Jobs with Justice exemplifies what climate justice looks like in action. Their efforts in Sonoma County and beyond demonstrate that recovery is most effective when led by those who understand the land best, and when justice is treated not as an afterthought but as a fundamental principle of the work.
CDP is proud to support organizations like North Bay Jobs with Justice, because we understand that long-term recovery is not only about reducing wildfire risk — it is about helping the people whose lives are deeply tied to the land. Wildfire mitigation requires investing in communities so that workers can labor safely and with dignity in a changing climate, are protected from hazardous conditions and are paid fairly for their contributions. Long-term recovery means building systems that provide people with the resources they need not just to survive, but to thrive.
Story by Taylor Chapman