Asian American & Pacific Isla

Outreac

Strategy

1EPA The United States Environmental Protection 
Source: Cheryl Ly
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Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Outreach Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Community Partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Economic Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Education Pipeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Employment and Professional Advancement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Community Partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Seafood Consumption in the Pacific Northwest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Mercury Action Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Environmental Justice for Philadelphia’s Chinatown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Giving AAPI Communities a Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Reaching Out to Korean Dry Cleaners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Protecting Generations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Protecting Workers From Pesticide Hazards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Economic Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Resource Applications, Inc.: Professionalism Helps a Small Firm Win Big . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

EPA Procurement: Making the Perfect Match . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Fund Tracking to Boost Opportunities for Minority-Owned Businesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

JES: Providing Comprehensive Services to EPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Education Pipeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

EPA Helps Reinvent a San Francisco School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Philadelphia Students Tackle Urban Environmental Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Protecting Coral Reefs in the Pacific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Raising Environmental Awareness in America’s Island State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Employment and Professional Advancement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

Asian Pacific American Organization Honors EPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

Tapping a Valuable Workforce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

College Relations Program With University of Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

EPA Partners with ECO to Encourage Environmental Careers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

Translations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

EPA Regional Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

This map indicates the states and/or territories comprising each Region.

Summary of U.S. EPA Community Grant Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40
[Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders] are a people in constant

motion, a great work in progress, each stage more faceted and complex

than before. As we overcome adversity and take on new challenges, we

have evolved as a people. Our special dynamism is our gift to America. 

As we transform ourselves, so we are transforming America.

—Helen Zia, Author

Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) represent a vast array of cultures. The term

“Asian Americans” refers to Americans with origins from one or more of the 28 Asian nations,

while the term “Pacific Islanders” refers to Native Hawai’ians and other natives living in the U.S.

protectorates of Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, or

Americans with origins from one or more of the 19 Pacific Island Nations (see box on page 3).

A Strategy for Reaching Out

EPA developed the National Asian American and Pacific Islander Outreach Strategy to create

a comprehensive framework for strengthening the Agency’s relationship with the nation’s diverse

and growing AAPI community. The strategy outlines approaches for managers to expand outreach

efforts both within and outside the Agency, and for increasing dialogue with the AAPI community.

The strategy rests on four pillars: 1) Community Partnerships; 2) Economic Opportunities;

3) Education Pipeline; and 4) Employment and Professional Advancement. Together, these pillars

provide a strong foundation for ensuring that EPA:

• Responds effectively to the environmental and public health needs of AAPIs, and encourages public participation and informed decision-making.

• Provides economic opportunities for AAPI businesses.

• Encourages AAPI youth to be stewards of the environment and to consider the pursuit of

environmental careers.

• Enhances diversity and professional opportunity within the Agency’s workplace.

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Listening to the Community

EPA engaged in a cooperative process to develop and shape this strategy. During the spring

and summer of 2000, senior Agency officials met with AAPI residents, community groups, academia, businesses, and state and local governments in five U.S. communities with diverse AAPI populations. The purpose of these listening sessions was to gather community input on the strategy

and to raise awareness about the environment in which these people live.

The first listening session took place on May 10, 2000, in Seattle, Washington. Co-sponsored

by the National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA), the informal meeting gave attendees an

opportunity to speak to high-level EPA officials and to share their ideas for reaching out to AAPI

communities, both in the Seattle area and nationally. Attendees brought up a broad range of

issues, from environmental to socioeconomic, for EPA to consider in crafting the strategy.

Subsequent meetings were held in

Oakland, Jersey City, Houston, and Chicago.

These meetings were designed to provide

attendees with information about EPA’s work

and mission at the national and regional levels, and to encourage attendees to ask questions about environmental and health

concerns in their neighborhoods.

The voices and visions of these sessions

helped EPA shape the outreach strategy to

reflect environmental and health issues which

are high priorities for AAPI communities.

The strategy is a document that will evolve

and adapt to AAPIs’ changing needs, issues,

and concerns.

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Asian Indian

Bangladeshi

Burmese

Cambodian

Chinese

Filipino

Hmong

Indonesian

Japanese

Korean

Laotian

Malayan

Okinawan

Pakistani

Sri Lankan

Thai

Vietnamese

All other Asian

Chamorro

Fijian

Guamanian

Hawai’ian

Marshallese

Micronesian

Northern Mariana

Islander

Palauan

Samoan

Tahitian

Tongan

All other Pacific

Islander

Asian Native Hawai’ian or 

Other Pacific Islander

Tracing AAPI Roots
Community Partnerships

Build effective partnerships with AAPI organizations and communities to

raise their environmental awareness and to increase EPA’s responsiveness

to their environmental and public health priorities.

Implementation Guidance:

Enhance awareness of environmental and public health issues through community outreach

and dialogue to help families and communities make informed decisions concerning environmental exposures that may cause illnesses in themselves and their children.

• Increase dialogue with AAPI communities to identify environmental and health-related

outreach needs, and develop strategies to address these needs.

• Educate AAPI communities on the meaning and importance of environmental justice.

• Improve communication of cleanup activities in all areas affected by hazardous waste sites.

• Educate AAPI communities in a culturally sensitive manner regarding possible health risks

due to their lifestyle, occupation, dietary consumption patterns, and other practices. 

• Develop an EPA compliance assistance outreach program to increase AAPI community and

business awareness and understanding of EPA regulations.

• Coordinate with other federal agencies to exchange and disseminate appropriate health

information to AAPI communities.

• Formulate strategies with AAPI communities to overcome linguistic and cultural barriers to

optimize the dissemination of information and building of partnerships within predominately immigrant populations.

Develop a partnership with AAPI communities to remove obstacles to the revitalization of

brownfield sites and properties.

• Investigate the degree and extent of site contamination (i.e., conduct an assessment) to

facilitate brownfields cleanup and encourage the mitigation of potential health risks.

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For articles featuring EPA’s

efforts to build partnerships

and raise environmental

awareness within AAPI

communities, see page 10.
• Encourage community organizations, business developers, and local governments to form a partnership to revitalize existing properties that can directly benefit local AAPI communities.

Identify and promote research opportunities to collect data on environmentally induced health disparities in AAPI communities.

• Coordinate and learn from other communities facing environmental justice and health-related

issues prevalent in their local area and the best means to address them.

• Identify existing grant mechanisms and encourage community-based organizations and businesses

to apply for grant funding to conduct AAPI-related health research projects.

Encourage AAPIs to participate in Federal Advisory Committees such as NEJAC (National

Environmental Justice Advisory Committee) involved in the Agency’s environmental decision-making

process.

• Develop an AAPI Resource Directory of professional, environmental/health, community, business,

and other organizations and make it available to the designated federal officials in charge of selecting members for Federal Advisory Committees.

• Actively recruit and recommend candidates to serve on EPA Federal Advisory Committees.

• Establish networks with AAPI professional organizations and other community-based organizations

to encourage technically competent individuals to become committee members.

Effectively promote EPA program objectives and accomplishments, and maintain continuous dialogue with the AAPI community.

• Develop a National AAPI Outreach Strategy publication for distribution to communities, including strategies for community partnerships.

• Develop and manage an AAPI Web site to serve as an information portal for AAPIs and as an outlet for continuous feedback on EPA’s AAPI strategies and activities.

Develop ways to improve access to environmental programs and information by individuals with 

limited English proficiency.

• Develop a Translation Protocol (guidance document) for translating general outreach materials into

foreign languages, including select AAPI languages.

• Develop alternative communication strategies for disseminating information (i.e., non-written

forms like symbols, pictures, audio/video, etc.).

• Encourage communication with other environmental justice communities regarding public participation and access to information activities.

• Provide Title VI (of the Civil Rights Act of 1964) guidance to all federal funding recipients.

• Utilize the Translation and Interpretative Service contract available through GSA to better communicate environmental and health issues to individuals with limited English proficiency.

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Economic Opportunities

Broaden access to EPA financial and technical assistance for community

groups and other non-governmental organizations serving AAPI

communities.

Implementation Guidance:

Increase AAPI awareness of and access to Agencywide grant and contracting opportunities.

• Develop outreach materials for

AAPI businesses, community

groups, and other organizations

serving AAPI communities to

boost awareness of grant and contracting opportunities.

• Hold a forum for AAPI businesses and other organizations to raise

their awareness of contracting

opportunities (e.g., AAPI

Business Counseling Day).

• Widely announce the availability

of training/workshops on how to

write grant proposals or how to

bid for government contracts and

encourage the use of grant-writing tutorials as part of the

Grant Compliance Initiative.

• Sponsor AAPI business conferences.

• Develop tracking systems that monitor financial resources

going to AAPI concerns, and identify any barriers to

awarding contracts and grants.

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive list of community

groups and other non-governmental organizations serving

the AAPI community to provide outreach on future procurement opportunities with EPA.

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For articles detailing EPA’s

financial assistance programs and other efforts to

aid small, minority businesses, see page 24.

See also chart of EPA grants

programs, pages 40-41.
Education Pipeline

Identify additional resources for institutions and programs serving AAPI

students at all educational levels.

Implementation Guidance:

Promote and manage grant fellowship and scholarship programs to ensure equal access to and

fairness in the awarding of research funds.

• Help students become aware of these programs, and encourage them to apply for grant

funding.

• Evaluate the peer review process for proposals to ensure fairness in award selection.

• Provide guidance to recipients of federal

financial assistance who administer education programs or activities and promote

consistent and adequate enforcement of

Title IX (of the Civil Rights Act of 1964)

by the federal agencies.

Adopt a local school in a diverse, urban area

with a significant AAPI student population.

• Develop a 2-year strategic work plan to

promote school participation in sciencebased activities.

• Encourage EPA regional staff to participate

in developing environmental science 

curricula.

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For articles highlighting

EPA’s endeavors to reach out

to AAPI youth through partnerships with educational

institutions, see page 28.
Employment and Professional Advancement 

Demonstrate that EPA is an employer of choice that is committed to fair

and equal employment opportunity.

Implementation Guidance:

Develop effective outreach strategies to ensure current and future AAPI professionals will

consider public service as a viable employment option.

• Develop a program with local schools that puts students in contact with positive role 

models working in the environmental field.

• Work with local schools to develop environmental curricula or environmental education

study materials.

• Establish contacts with AAPI professional organizations and sponsor conferences.

Work with EPA’s Office of Human Resources and

Organizational Services to ensure an effective Agency 

presence at a wide variety of recruitment opportunities,

including AAPI conferences and events

• Coordinate local recruitment efforts with EPA’s

national program and other Agency offices.

• Promote the understanding and better utilization of

all available federal hiring authorities to recruit AAPI

individuals for the EPA Intern Program, Presidential

Management Intern Program, and other Agency

vacancies.

• Attend and actively participate in recruitment events,

even when EPA is not in a hiring mode.

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Emphasize the recruitment of AAPI applicants for EPA’s summer intern program and similar

entry-level trainee positions.

• Establish a network of contacts at various colleges, universities, and local AAPI organizations to disseminate information on environmental career opportunities and recruit

prospective AAPI employees.

• Encourage collaboration between colleges and universities serving AAPI students similar to

the currently established EPA network of contacts with the Historically Black Colleges and

Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), and the

Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs).

• Optimize the use of Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with educational institutions

and AAPI-serving organizations.

Remove barriers to AAPI employee participation in professional development and training

programs.

• Widely disseminate the criteria for hiring, promotions, awards, career development activities, and training.

• Review organizational Diversity Action Plans to ensure equal access to developmental

opportunities, including supervisory and managerial positions and special 

assignments.

Adopt policies and procedures to make EPA managers and supervisors accountable for

upholding equal employment opportunity and fairness guidelines.

• Consider AAPI underrepresentation when developing

innovative approaches to implement the senior executive service accountability model.

• Evaluate manager and supervisor performance in using

tools authorized by the Affirmative Employment

Program Plan and Diversity Action Plans.

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For articles outlining EPA’s

efforts to attract AAPI professionals to its workforce,

see page 34.
Seafood Consumption in the Pacific Northwest . . . . . . .11

Mercury Action Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Environmental Justice for Philadelphia’s Chinatown . . .15

Giving AAPI Communities a Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Reaching Out to Korean Dry Cleaners . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Protecting Generations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Protecting Workers From Pesticide Hazards . . . . . . . . . .23

When building community relationships, it’s

important to remember that there is no typical

Asian American or Pacific Islander. AAPIs come

from culturally and geographically diverse origins

and speak different languages and dialects. Many of

these individuals also come as refugees from wartorn countries where there is an inherent distrust of

government.

Reaching out to this vast and disparate population means that EPA must first and foremost listen to and address the specific issues facing

individual AAPI communities—ranging from

brownfields redevelopment to the consumption of

contaminated seafood. The Agency also must use

culturally appropriate media channels and translate

educational materials into AAPI languages.

EPA has demonstrated its commitment to

community partnerships by supporting the firstever seafood consumption study focusing on AAPIs

in King County, Washington. The Agency is also

working with AAPI communities to ensure environmental justice, to protect workers, and to

improve children’s health—especially those living 

in urban areas—through education and training 

on issues such as indoor air, lead, and pesticides.

The following articles illustrate some of the

ways EPA is working with AAPI communities to

build effective partnerships.

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Seafood Consumption in the Pacific Northwest

Seafood offers a host of nutritional benefits, from low fat to high protein. Many AAPI groups

consider the collection and consumption of seafood a healthy activity that reflects a traditional

way of life. Harvesting seafood is also an economic necessity for many AAPIs. But there are potential concerns associated with eating seafood. Contaminants that enter the water (through industrial

discharges and other means) can collect in the tissues of fish and shellfish, posing health risks to

the people who eat them. AAPIs are particularly at risk because seafood is a large part of their diet.

In the 1990s, EPA funded a study to examine seafood consumption patterns among AAPI

groups in King County, Washington. The study was significant in several ways. First, very few

seafood consumption studies have been done for ethnic groups, and the information collected

through this effort provides new insights into the consumption patterns and food preparation

practices among AAPIs. In addition, the study was culturally balanced and examined the practices

of many different ethnic groups, reflecting the great diversity of AAPI populations. Perhaps most

important, the study was designed by the community for the community, so it truly engaged and

involved the people most affected by the results.

Getting Started

In 1994, it became common knowledge that AAPIs in King County were

being exposed to contaminants at hazardous waste sites in the area. People were

seen collecting seaweed from the beaches

and harvesting seafood from the Puget

Sound.

Dr. Roseanne Lorenzana, a toxicologist

at EPA’s Region 10 office, decided to go to

the area and talk firsthand to the AAPI

community. Dr. Lorenzana described her

attempts at communicating with the people she encountered as “two magnets

opposing each other.” The more she tried,

the further they stepped back.

Dr. Lorenzana realized that she needed

a different approach if she wanted to build

trust and communicate effectively with the AAPI community. First, she hired an intern who knew

leaders in both the Japanese and Filipino communities. Next, she enlisted the aid of the Refugee

Federation Service Center (RFSC), the largest social aid organization for recent immigrants and

refugees in King County. The agency’s bilingual/bicultural staff and volunteers speak a variety of

Asian languages and maintain affiliations with several AAPI community groups.

EPA awarded two grants to the RFSC to assess the seafood consumption patterns of 10 ethnic groups in King County: Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, Laotian,

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Mien, Samoan, and Vietnamese. The study also would

examine seafood preparation and cooking methods and

develop culturally appropriate health messages. To ensure

the messages effectively reached the community, the study

also would determine how AAPIs prefer to receive information.

Committee Involvement

To interest and involve AAPI leaders in the study,

RFSC set up three committees. The 15 members of the

Community Steering Committee each belonged to at least one of the ethnic groups being surveyed and was affiliated with one or more community organizations. Having community contacts

was important for facilitating the networking and outreach efforts of the study’s staff. This committee also oversaw every facet of the study and provided recommendations on specific cultural

issues, such as how to approach the community.

According to Dr. Lorenzana, “I learned that you couldn’t just call up a person, or go to someone’s home and hand them a survey to fill out.” There are culturally appropriate ways to visit a

home and greet people to set the stage for appropriate communication, she noted.

The Community Steering Committee also would ensure that a culturally acceptable survey

instrument was developed. “I thought it was important for the community to design the study to

the extent possible,” Dr. Lorenzana said.

The other two committees provided technical assistance

and helped ensure that the study was relevant and applicable

to different interested agencies and ethnic groups in King

County. A first-generation Chinese American was also brought

on board as a statistician. In addition, the University of

Washington’s community outreach office got involved at this

point. “The university saw the study as something new and

innovative and wanted to participate,” Dr. Lorenzana said.

Study Results

Based on the consumption patterns of 202 respondents,

the study found that:

• AAPIs generally consumed seafood at a very high rate,

even higher than some Native American tribes in the

area who maintain a traditional subsistence harvest from

local estuaries and rivers.

• AAPIs of all income and education levels ate about the

same amount of seafood, and there was no statistical

difference in consumption rates between men and

women. 

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I thought it was important for

the community to design the

study to the extent possible.

—Dr. Roseanne Lorenzana

EPA Region 10
• Members of the Vietnamese and Japanese communities consumed the most seafood, while

Mien, Hmong, and Samoan community members consumed the least amount of seafood. 

• Shellfish was eaten most often and in the highest amount. More than half of the AAPIs

surveyed ate fish skin and crab butter. This information was useful because toxins can 

concentrate in higher levels in different parts of fish and shellfish.

• First-generation AAPIs and people older than 55 years old consumed the most seafood in

nearly all categories. Nonetheless, second-generation AAPIs still consumed more seafood

than the “average” American.

The amount of seafood harvested locally was relatively small, varying from 3 percent to 21

percent, depending on the seafood type. Dr.

Lorenzana was somewhat surprised that more people were not harvesting seafood from local waters,

although the study indicated that individual small

groups did fish extensively from Puget Sound. She

noted that because the study was designed to sample so many groups, the insight into the behavior

of any one ethnicity was limited.

Based on the study’s results, a brochure was

developed, translated into the 10 languages, and

tested with focus groups. The publication describes

risks from eating bad seafood, types of contaminants found in seafood, and populations most at

risk, such as the elderly and children. It also offers

suggestions to reduce potential risks, including

understanding which types of seafood are most

likely to cause problems, knowing where the

seafood comes from, and using safe preparation

and cooking practices.

Next Steps

The work is not over. The logical next step is

to test for contaminant types and amounts in the different seafood species being consumed by

AAPI groups in King County. Ultimately, Dr. Lorenzana hopes EPA can conduct a risk assessment

that would clarify the risks to these communities. But this study was a meaningful first step toward

engaging the community in an important local health issue and raising awareness of seafood safety.

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Getting the Word Out

The study found that the preferred

learning methods among the respondents were:

1. Books and pamphlets (69 percent)

2. Verbal communication (55 percent)

3. Videos (35 percent)

The preferred information sources

were:

1. AAPI community newspapers/

newsletters (75 percent)

2. Television (65 percent)

3. Word of mouth (60 percent)
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Mercury Action Plan

Recent studies have shown an increase in U.S. fish consumption, particularly

among AAPIs. According to EPA’s 1997 Mercury Report to Congress, AAPIs

“consume fish more often than do other population members.” This is a concern

for EPA because once mercury is released into the environment, it can reach a

body of water and contaminate fish at a level that is hazardous to humans.

In response to the high levels of mercury that are being produced, EPA is

drafting the Mercury Action Plan. The plan’s purpose is to address voluntary and

regulatory actions that the Agency is taking to reduce mercury releases into the

environment, as well as help coordinate EPA mercury-related activities. In addition, the plan identifies industry sectors that the Agency and other interested

stakeholders, such as the AAPI community, can work with to reduce or eliminate

mercury in manufacturing processes and products.

Solid waste incineration and fossil fuel combustion contribute about 87 percent of the mercury emissions in the United States. Mercury can also be

released into the environment through a variety of other ways, including mining

and smelting activities, and wastewater treatment facilities, which may release

mercury directly into water bodies.

EPA regulates air emissions from the leading major mercury sources, including

coal-fired electric utilities and municipal, medical, and hazardous waste incinerators.

Educating the public about mercury exposure is critical, particularly for groups

such as AAPIs, who ingest fish as a significant part of their diet. EPA has published several documents that include Should I Eat the Fish I Catch, which was

translated into Hmong and Vietnamese, and the Seafood Consumption Study,

which was translated into Cambodian, Filipino, Laotian, Samoan, Korean, and

Vietnamese. Such materials are vital for communicating to AAPI communities the

potential health hazards of mercury.
Environmental Justice for Philadelphia’s

Chinatown

Redevelopment of blighted areas can provide obvious benefits to a community, particularly

when those areas include brownfields. In some cases, however, redevelopment efforts can adversely

impact a community, especially in areas comprised of low-income populations or people of color.

In Philadelphia’s Chinatown district, a baseball stadium development project proposed by the city

became a concern for the AAPI community, which

believed the stadium would hinder retail growth,

intensify traffic and air pollution, and contribute to

parking congestion.

The Philadelphia Chinatown Development

Corporation (PCDC) rallied local forces and outside support to persuade the city to reconsider its

proposal. The PCDC approached EPA’s Region 3

office to tap the Agency’s support in opposing the

construction of a stadium at 12th and Vine Streets.

Primarily, the proposed stadium would have

“continued the stunting of Chinatown,” said

Andrew Toy, a 10-year board member for the

PCDC, during a City Council hearing in 2000.

Chinatown is almost completely surrounded by

development, including the Vine Street Expressway,

Independence Mall, and the Convention Center.

The stadium’s location would have dashed any hopes for expanding Chinatown northward.

According to the PCDC, Chinatown has lost 25 percent of its housing and businesses due to

urban renewal projects. Even so, Chinatown’s population has quadrupled during the past decade,

said John Chin, the PCDC’s executive director. The population surge has caused many residents

to live in substandard housing and overcrowded conditions, which leaves little choice but for

Chinatown to expand, Chin said. “The stadium

would have pinned us in from all sides,” he added.

To aid the community in its effort, EPA

toured the site and provided the PCDC with a

geographic information system (GIS) map, which

detailed census and environmental data about the

site. Such information helped the PCDC clearly

identify what was at stake if a baseball stadium was

built.

EPA also worked to involve the Pennsylvania

State Department of Environmental Protection

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15

Ensuring Environmental

Justice

Over the last decade, Americans

have become increasingly aware that

minority populations and/or low-income

populations bear a disproportionate

amount of adverse health and environmental effects. EPA established an

Environmental Justice program to

ensure that communities comprised

mainly of people of color or low-income

populations receive equal protection

under environmental laws.

We’ve worked hard with the state

DEP to build a strong awareness of

environmental justice issues—and I

think we’ve been successful.

—Samantha Fairchild

Director of the Office of Enforcement,

Compliance, and Environmental Justice

EPA Region 3
(DEP). EPA toured the site again with the DEP,

and even took DEP officials to a local

Chinatown restaurant to further discuss the environmental justice issues of the proposed stadium,

such as traffic and air pollution.

“We’ve worked hard with the state DEP to

build a strong awareness of environmental justice

issues—and I think we’ve been successful,” said

Samantha Fairchild, Director of the Office of

Enforcement, Compliance, and Environmental

Justice for EPA Region 3.

The city’s mayor eventually rescinded the

proposal, citing financial factors, not environmental justice. However, because of the efforts of

EPA and the PCDC, environmental justice

issues faced by communities such as Chinatown

gained significant attention by local and state

authorities. In addition, this scenario helped

demonstrate the power of public participation in

achieving environmental equity.

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What Is a Brownfield?

A brownfield is an abandoned, idled, or

underused industrial and commercial facility at which expansion or redevelopment is

complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. Examples of

brownfields include abandoned factories,

lots, gas stations, and warehouses.

Lowell, Massachusetts, where the AAPI

community makes up a significant portion

of the population, has targeted 17 brownfield sites for redevelopment. Lowell’s

redevelopment efforts have leveraged

more than $100 million in funding.

Seattle and King County, Washington,

which also have a significant AAPI population, are looking for ways to clean up and

redevelop the 8,500-acre Duwamish

industrial corridor, with more than 200

contaminated properties.

Ignatius Wang, a board member of the PCDC, addresses attendees at a

Stadium Out of Chinatown meeting. To Wang’s immediate left is PCDC

executive director John Chin; at left are councilman Frank DiCicco and

Cecila Yep.

Source: PCDC 
Giving AAPI Communities a Voice

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 48 percent of AAPIs have lived in this country for 20

years or less, and certain groups—such as Vietnamese, Cambodians, Laotians, Hmong, Samoans,

and Tongans—have immigrated to the United States mainly within the past 30 years. These newer

immigrants face greater environmental hazards as a result of high unemployment, low education

levels, and language barriers.

The Asian Pacific Environmental Network

(APEN) is working to organize community

leaders and to build grassroots organizations in

these and other AAPI communities. These

groups or leaders can then act as partners with

APEN and collaborate with other organizations

working on environmental justice issues.

“Environmental justice” is the term used to

describe efforts made toward addressing the disproportionate environmental hazards that

minority and low-income communities often

face.

APEN has worked closely with EPA in recent years to augment AAPIs’ voice on environmental issues. The group helped the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC)

develop a document that outlined a model for public participation, which was distributed to government agencies at all levels. (NEJAC is a Federal Advisory Committee established in 1993 to

provide independent consultation and recommendations to the Administrator of EPA on matters

related to environmental justice.) APEN also mobilized AAPIs to participate in public forums

regarding issues affecting

their communities and

facilitated a meeting in

1998 in Oakland for

NEJAC to hear firsthand

the issues faced by a local

Southeast Asian community. 

To date, most of

APEN’s work has centered

on San Francisco, where

the organization is based,

and the Bay Area. For

example, APEN launched

the Laotian Organizing

Project (LOP), which aims

to build a democratic

infrastructure within the

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For AAPI communities, environmental

justice is about improving our overall

quality of life. To do this, we need to

develop mechanisms to promote meaningful community participation.

—Joselito Laudencia, executive director of the

Asian Pacific Environmental Network

Source: APEN 
Laotian community in the Richmond area of West Contra Costa County to help it resolve environmental justice issues. The LOP effort has led to a number of improvements, including the formation of a teacher advisory program at Richmond High School, where students faced a lack of

counseling resources. In the pilot program, at least one adult provides guidance to each student. In

addition, the LOP persuaded Contra Costa County to implement a multilingual emergency

phone alert system to boost awareness of environmental and health hazards among non-Englishspeaking community members.

APEN is also working to build networks beyond the Bay Area and California. APEN’s ultimate goal is to create a national network through which AAPIs and other minority communities

can voice their concerns

and effectively enhance

their quality of life.

Toward that end,

APEN collaborated with

five other environmental

justice networks to create

the Environmental Justice

Fund, which provides a

forum for environmental

justice groups to develop

resources. The fund is also

designed to distribute

resources equitably to

environmental justice

groups.

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APEN’s Laotian Organizing Project has successfully mobilized the community to participate in a

variety of environmental issues.

Source: APEN
Reaching Out to Korean Dry Cleaners

Approximately 30 percent of dry cleaning businesses in the United States are owned by firstgeneration Koreans. Because of the potential health and environmental concerns associated with

perchloroethylene, or “perc,” a chemical solvent used by most dry cleaners and a suspected carcinogen, EPA and stakeholders from the dry cleaning industry and public interest groups have

been working together to evaluate new technologies, process controls, and chemical substitutions.

To reach these key stakeholders, EPA’s Design for the Environment’s Garment and Textile

Care Program (GTCP) translated several educational and informational publications into

Korean. GTCP has also been working with the

Federation of Korean Dry Cleaners Associations

and the International Fabricare Institute to

inform Korean business owners about alternative

technologies that can improve their operations

and profit while contributing to a cleaner environment and safer workplace.

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Peer Training in Oakland

In 1999, the Korean Community Center of

the East Bay in Oakland, California, received an

EPA grant to fund the Peer Leadership Program,

which enlisted and trained peer leaders to provide community-based outreach to Korean

American dry cleaners, who constitute nearly

60 percent of all dry cleaner owners and operators in California.

Peer leaders shared information on the potential health

risks associated with the use of perchloroethylene. They

also discussed alternative technologies such as wet cleaning, which uses controlled applications of soap and water

and washer speeds to clean clothes without solvents. The

peer leaders also facilitated voluntary compliance with both

federal and local environmental regulations and conducted

comprehensive facility inspections covering air quality,

chemicals, pollution prevention, and record-keeping.

Under the EPA grant, the program trained 15 peer leaders and evaluated 60 dry cleaners in the Bay Area.
Protecting Generations

In recent years, EPA has worked to improve its understanding of how environmental hazards

pose risks to sensitive populations, particularly children. AAPI youth, like other children in

America, face a wide array of hazards, including:

• Lead poisoning from lead-based paint and

dust found in older buildings, soil, water

pipes, and other sources.

• Direct and indirect exposures to pesticides

used in homes, schools, farms, and elsewhere,

as well as to pesticide residues on certain

foods.

• Exposures to indoor and outdoor air pollutants, including secondhand smoke, that can

result in respiratory illnesses and asthma.

• Exposures to mercury, polychlorinated

biphenyls (PCBs), and other chemical and

microbial contaminants from swimming in

polluted surface waters, drinking contaminated water, and eating certain fish and shellfish.

• Exposure to toxic waste from abandoned

industrial sites located near communities.

• Overexposure to the sun’s harmful ultraviolet

rays, which can cause skin cancer, cataracts,

and other medical problems in adulthood.

EPA is working with schools, parents, communities, medical professionals, and other groups

to educate AAPIs about environmental threats to children and preventive actions. The Agency also

is encouraging community-right-to-know efforts and public participation through a variety of

grants and EPA regional projects.

Educating Families About Lead Poisoning

Lead poisoning crosses all socioeconomic, geographic, and racial boundaries, but the burden

falls disproportionately on low-income and minority families. In the mid-1990s, EPA provided

funding to launch an ongoing lead education program in ethnic communities in Milwaukee,

Wisconsin. The program has been successful in raising awareness of lead poisoning among the

city’s Southeast Asian—primarily Hmong and Laotian—and Hispanic communities and in 

identifying homes with high lead levels.

The program’s goal was to reach out to families served by the Sixteenth Street Community

Health Center and teach them about lead hazards in the home to prevent their children from

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being lead-poisoned. Many children in these families had

elevated levels of lead in their blood but were not being

routinely tested.

Bilingual workers living in the community went doorto-door, talking with parents about potential lead hazards

in their homes and ways to protect their children. The

workers conducted “finger-stick” blood lead tests on 

residents. When lead was detected in the home, workers

provided additional information on managing and abating

the problem. Educational materials were translated into

Hmong, and further outreach was conducted via community groups and festivals.

As a result of the project, the AAPI community in

Milwaukee is more aware of lead hazards and how to protect their children from lead poisoning. In fact, lead poisoning of children identified through the study has

dropped by 60 percent.

Taking Actions to Reduce “Chinese Chalk” Use

“Chinese Chalk” is an illegal and dangerous pesticide that is often marketed to AAPIs.

Applied on floors and baseboards to control crawling insects, the chalk contains chemicals that can

cause health effects and allergic reactions. This product is imported form China, but because it is

unregistered in the United States, its ingredients and packaging are unregulated.

Chinese Chalk is particularly hazardous to children. Once removed from the package, this

pesticide product is easily confused with blackboard chalk. The colorful boxes used to package

these products also have been found to contain high levels of lead and other heavy metals, which

can be a problem because of children’s hand-to-mouth behavior. In addition, because Chinese

Chalk is powder-based, its poisonous properties

can become airborne.

EPA Regions 5 and 9 have issued warnings to

alert AAPIs of the dangers of this product and to

recommend safer alternatives to manage pests. The

Agency is also taking enforcement actions to stop

the product’s distribution. In 1998, EPA ordered

one of the chalk’s distributors to stop selling the

product; the company had actively marketed the

product to schools and consumers on the Internet

and in newspaper advertisements. This is a significant accomplishment given that it is difficult to

stop the sale of the products, which are typically

marketed at flea markets, swap meets, and small

retail venues.

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21

Peeling, chipping, and cracking lead-based paints are

hazardous to children.

Chinese chalk is an illegal and dangerous pesticide.
Raising Awareness of Indoor Air Pollutants

It’s no mystery that childhood asthma is on the rise. Asthma is the most prevalent chronic illness in our nation’s children. Each year, nearly 300 children die from this condition, and approximately 150,000 children are hospitalized. The problem affects American youth of all races and

ethnic groups, but it is most severe among lowincome, inner-city, and minority children.

Many pollutants can cause or contribute to

asthma, but some of the most common triggers are

indoor air pollutants such as dust and molds. In

1999, the Association of Asian Pacific Community

Health Organizations (AAPCHO) received an EPA

grant to help raise awareness of asthma and indoor

air quality issues in AAPI communities. AAPCHO is

an association of 14 community health centers

around the country.

The organization translated several EPA educational brochures on asthma triggers, radon, and carbon monoxide into Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean and

distributed them through their member centers in

Washington, Massachusetts, New York, California, and

Hawai’i. AAPCHO also sent the documents to organizations that requested them.

According to Jeff Caballero, Executive Director of

AAPCHO, the materials have been well received by the

AAPI communities, particularly in Worcester,

Massachusetts, Boston, and Seattle, and have been instrumental in detecting several cases of asthma and radon.

The association also examined AAPIs’ knowledge and

attitudes toward indoor air quality issues in several cities

and provided training to health care workers serving AAPI

communities.

Through these projects, AAPCHO is providing

resources and skills to community-based organizations that

serve AAPIs and is helping these organizations collaborate

with local partners working on indoor air issues. The projects also are empowering individuals to make changes in

their homes to reduce the prevalence of asthma among

AAPI children and upgrade the quality of life of families.

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AAPCHO is very proud of the work

we've done with these projects, for

we were able to further raise awareness about indoor air issues within

AAPI communities that were not

adequately being reached.

—Jeff Caballero,

Executive Director of AAPCHO
Protecting Workers From

Pesticide Hazards

EPA’s Worker Protection Standard (WPS) seeks to protect the more than 3.5 million U.S. agricultural workers and

pesticide handlers who work with these potentially hazardous

chemicals. The standard requires employers to provide personal protective equipment, safety training, and access to emergency assistance. They also must adhere to a number of other

guidelines.

In order to reach AAPI populations that would be affected by the standard, EPA has translated an informational pamphlet on the WPS into eight languages, including Laotian,

Thai, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and Mandarin Chinese. EPA is

also working with state extension agents and state agricultural

agencies to reach small farm groups who may be unaware of

the dangers of pesticides.

EPA also is assessing its efforts in reaching out to AAPIs

and other non-English-speaking workers to determine if the

program is meeting its goals and to break down remaining

language and cultural barriers.

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Resource Applications, Inc.: Professionalism 

Helps a Small Firm Win Big . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

EPA Procurement: Making the Perfect Match . . . . . . . .26

Fund Tracking to Boost Opportunities for 

Minority-Owned Businesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

JES: Providing Comprehensive Services to EPA . . . . . . .27

EPA is committed to assist small, minorityowned businesses through grants, contracts, and

other means of economical support. Unfortunately,

many AAPI organizations and AAPI-owned businesses are unaware of such opportunities or don't

fully understand how to take advantage of these

economic benefits. 

To improve access to and awareness of its

financial assistance programs, EPA must continue

to build bridges with AAPI community groups 

and organizations and strengthen collaborative 

procurement planning within the Agency.

EPA is reaching out to AAPI-owned businesses through partnerships with trade associations and

through public workshops. Additionally, EPA plans

to track its resource allocations to minority businesses, allowing the Agency to focus future outreach efforts where minorities such as AAPIs are

underrepresented. Through these and other

efforts—such as an AAPI Business Counseling Day

and other conferences—EPA will continue to provide economic support and education to AAPIowned businesses. 

The following articles illuminate how EPA is

working to ensure that AAPIs have equal access to

economical and business opportunities. For more

information, see the Summary of U.S. EPA

Community Grant Programs on pages 40–41.

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Resource Applications, Inc.: 

Professionalism Helps a Small Firm Win Big

Resource Applications, Inc., (RAI) is a small, Indian-owned environmental consulting firm

based in Burke, Virginia, that has been a contractor for EPA for the past 15 years. In 2000, RAI

was awarded a $17 million dollar contract with the

Agency, one of the largest contracts EPA has ever

awarded to a small business.

Under the contract, RAI will provide emergency

response services to support EPA’s mid-Atlantic region

in the investigation and cleanup of hazardous waste

sites and oil spills, primarily in Virginia. The 5-year

contract also covers work in Delaware, Maryland,

Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the District of

Columbia. RAI won the contract in direct competition with other small business firms.

Dr. Tara Singh founded RAI in 1979. Dr. Singh

is an environmental engineer with more than 30 years of experience in regulatory compliance,

investigations planning, and design and construction oversight. Before starting his own firm, he

worked for a number of large organizations, including Bell Atlantic, Lockheed Martin, and the

U.S. Department of Defense.

Dr. Singh said he believes his firm has become a successful government contractor primarily

because of its talented, dedicated staff and its commitment to excellence. “You have to be a professional organization first,” he said. “You have to be committed to the program and the growth of

the company to succeed.”

RAI has approximately 75 employees,

including engineers, scientists, support personnel,

and specialists, in several offices along the East

Coast. The firm consults with both private and

public sector entities and provides services in

comprehensive environmental management, sanitary engineering, transportation infrastructure,

construction oversight, and information systems.

By setting aside large funds for small business

contracting, EPA ensures that small and minorityowned businesses benefit from contracting opportunities within the Agency. Through this contracting approach, both the Agency and the

businesses enjoy substantial awards.

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You have to be a professional

organization first. You have to be

committed to the program and the

growth of the company to succeed.

—Dr. Tara Singh,

Founder of RAI

Dr. Tara Singh, seated at right, of RAI at the contract award signing

ceremony. To date, the contract is the largest that EPA has awarded

a small business.
EPA Procurement: Making the Perfect Match

In dialogues with Asian American communities, EPA discovered that many minority-owned

businesses are not aware of contracting and grant opportunities with the Agency. In 2000, EPA’s

Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) joined the Asian American

Suppliers Council (AASC) in an effort to reach out to Asian American businesses and increase its

representation in EPA procurement activities.

AASC is a program of the U.S. Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce. AASC offers a

matchmaking service between purchasers and Asian American suppliers, providing a unique

national forum for the two groups to develop mutually beneficial business relationships. It also

coordinates business partnerships between suppliers to help small companies improve their qualifications to bid on larger contracts. In addition, AASC provides purchasers with marketing services

tailored to the Asian American community, such as advertising, direct marketing, translation, and

polling.

OSDBU is the EPA office designated to stimulate and improve the

involvement of small, minority, and

women-owned businesses in the overall

EPA procurement process. Other

OSDBU outreach efforts targeted

toward the AAPI community include

one-on-one counseling sessions and an

Asian American Business Counseling

Day.

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For More Information

For more information about doing business with EPA, visit <www.epa.gov/oam>

or contact EPA’s Office of Acquisition

Management, U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, Washington, DC,

20460, Mail Code 3801R.

For more information on OSDBU, visit

<www.epa.gov/osdbu> or write to

OSDBU, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.

(1230A), Washington, DC, 20460; or call

202 564-4100.

The U.S. Small Business Administration

(SBA) provides financial, technical, and

management assistance to more than one

million small-business owners each year.

Local SBA offices are located in each U.S.

state, Guam, and Puerto Rico. For more

information, write to SBA Headquarters,

409 3rd St., SW., Washington, DC, 20416;

call 800 U-ASK-SBA, or visit <www.sbaonline.sba.gov/gc>.

See also chart of EPA grants

programs, pages 40-41.
Fund Tracking to Boost Opportunities for

Minority-Owned Businesses

In 2001, EPA started asking new contract

awardees to voluntarily identify the specific

racial or ethnic category that best describes their

business ownership. The data will be treated as

confidential business information and will be

used only internally for general statistical purposes or to help focus future outreach initiatives

to minority-owned businesses unaware of EPA

contracting opportunities.

“Working in conjunction with EPA’s

Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business

Utilization, we will evaluate the data and compare it to data from the U.S. Census Bureau to

try and determine which minority groups are

underrepresented in EPA procurement,” said Leigh Pomponio of EPA. The Agency will collect

this information for 2 years, after which the program will be reevaluated. The program is expected

to continue for as long as the collected data remains useful to EPA.

Possible outreach initiatives that might result from this effort include nationwide workshops,

seminars, and conferences, as well as presentations on how to do business with EPA and how the

government contracting process works. Although these initiatives will be tailored to identified target audiences, they will be open to the general public.

JES: Providing Comprehensive Services to EPA

Joyo Environmental Services (JES), an Asian-American, woman-owned environmental consulting firm based in Alexandria, Virginia, has been an EPA contractor since it was founded in

1995. The firm has managed several EPA contracts as part of a mentor/protege subcontracting

program with a larger consulting firm in the area.

JES’s work under these contracts has focused on analytical, technical, and management support for EPA’s Superfund and brownfields programs. The company has produced EPA guidance

documents, analyzed technological case studies, developed databases, and planned conferences.

JES has also provided EPA with comprehensive services in areas such as risk assessment and management, pollution prevention, and health and safety evaluation.

For other small, disadvantaged firms wishing to enter the federal market, JES president Dr.

Josephine Huang advises them to be capable in marketing and finance. “Also, remember that there

are peaks and valleys in the consulting business,” she said, “You can succeed if you learn to face

disappointments with courage.”

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EPA Helps Reinvent a San Francisco School . . . . . . . . .29

Philadelphia Students Tackle Urban

Environmental Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Protecting Coral Reefs in the Pacific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Raising Environmental Awareness in 

America’s Island State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

AAPIs have been termed the “model minority”

because of their success, as a group, in attaining

high levels of education and career success. But this

label is misleading. Many young Asian Americans

and Pacific Islanders live below the poverty line

and struggle with cultural and language barriers in

their schools. Educators are concerned that there is

a significantly higher drop-out rate among Pacific

Islanders and Southeast Asians.

EPA is committed to working with educational institutions at all levels to reinforce the “education pipeline” and to help elementary, secondary,

and postsecondary students become tomorrow’s

environmental leaders.

One of EPA’s methods for reaching out to

AAPIs is to enhance access to and fairness in the

awarding of grants and research funds; another is

to work with schools and educational institutions

to provide job, internship, and fellowship opportunities. The Agency has “adopted” schools with

large AAPI populations to raise awareness of environmental issues and to strengthen science curricula. EPA staff also serve as role models and mentors

for these students.

The articles that follow describe some of the

ways that EPA is working to extend educational,

research, and environmental career opportunities

for AAPI youth.

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EPA Helps Reinvent a

San Francisco School

EPA is helping Galileo Academy redefine its

curriculum and image. Sixty percent of the students

at this San Francisco school are from AAPI communities. In the past, the school was plagued by high

dropout and low graduation rates, as well as interracial tension. But with the help of organizations such

as EPA, students are finding hope and value in education and preparing for careers in the sciences.

In 1995, a community-based grassroots effort led by the nonprofit group, Chinese for

Affirmative Action (CAA), transformed Galileo High School into the Galileo Academy of Science

& Technology. With the name change came modifications in the curriculum. Students now can

choose from five career pathways:

• Biological science

• Environmental science

• Space science/aeronautics

• Computer science/engineering

technology

• Creative media technology

Through CAA’s Applied Learning

and Linkages (ALL) program, EPA

partnered with Galileo to help the

school strengthen its curriculum. The

ALL program identifies volunteers and

mentors from the business, labor, and

technology communities and higher

education groups to provide academic

and career-building support.

Enriching Classroom

Experience

EPA’s activities are designed to

supplement and enrich the classroom

experience. By involving whole-class

case study/interactive sessions, such as

environmental role-playing simulation,

students gain critical thinking skills

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EPA recognizes the need to help

train the next generation of environmental professionals and is committed to a diverse workforce that

reflects the population of the region.

—Willard Chin

EPA Region 9

EPA Supports WALC in the City

The Galileo Academy of Science & Technology

is one of three high schools involved in the

Wilderness Arts and Literacy Collaboration (WALC),

a consortium of academic programs in the San

Francisco Unified School District. In 2000, WALC

received an EPA environmental education grant to

help expand the program’s inspiring work.

WALC introduces disadvantaged, inner-city 

students to environmental issues through hands-on

lessons, field trips, and camping expeditions. The

program encourages students to examine environmental issues in their communities, help raise

awareness of these issues, and take actions to

address them. WALC integrates science, English,

social studies, art, and technology. 

EPA’s Office of Environmental Education supports environmental education projects that

enhance the public’s awareness, knowledge, and

skills to make informed decisions that affect environmental quality. See pages 40 to 41 for more

information.
surrounding environmental issues. Hands-on

projects are also arranged in cooperation with

community-based organizations.

EPA organizes student field trips to relevant sites, such as facilities, community organizations, and the Regional EPA office, and

introduces the students to methods and technology such as geographic information systems. According to EPA’s Willard Chin, the

Agency hopes this partnership will encourage

students to be aware of the environmental

problems around them and to pursue careers

in the environmental field.

Providing Role Models

In addition to providing academic support, the partnership provides students with

role models who are from their cultural or ethnic heritage. “EPA recognizes the need to help

train the next generation of environmental

professionals and is committed to a diverse

workforce that reflects the population of the

region,” Chin said. With the help of EPA and

employee groups such as the Asian Pacific

American Council, role models representing

the diversity of the student population are

available.

The overall result of EPA’s involvement in

the program is an opportunity for students to

interact with professionals who share their academic and career interests as well as their cultural background. According to Chin, “Since its

transformation into an academy, Galileo is motivated to perform well; EPA remains on-call to

assist Galileo in any capacity.”

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Reaching Out to Students in

Kansas

For the past four years, EPA Region 7

office’s Asian Pacific American Special

Emphasis Program has worked to improve

environmental knowledge among AAPI communities. The Kansas City, Kansas, area has

attracted a growing AAPI population, thus

EPA has participated in a number of area

outreach activities focusing on young AAPIs.

For example, EPA is a partner in the

Community Garden Project, run by the local

group YouthFriends. Taking place at four

Kansas City, Kansas, elementary schools,

the program teaches fundamental ecological

and environmental concepts through handson activities. Students plant and harvest

their own gardens, and EPA volunteers train

the students on topics such as native plants

and composting. EPA is also working to

establish a relationship with the Garden City

Community College—where most area AAPI

college-age students enroll—to recruit co-op

students and interns.
Philadelphia Students Tackle Urban

Environmental Issues

To raise awareness of environmental issues among AAPI communities, EPA has supported

and encouraged environmental education activities since 1996 at Holy Redeemer School in

Philadelphia’s Chinatown. The Agency helped the school organize river cleanups and conduct a

community campaign against dumping waste in storm drains. Holy Redeemer students also have

attended an EPA summer program that teaches environmental lessons to urban youths.

River Cleanup

In 2000, EPA arranged for two classes from the school to participate in Earth Day outdoor

educational activities. Twenty-five seventh graders sailed on a commercial-size sailboat, the Jolly 2

Rover, from which the students took water samples from the Delaware River. In addition, 25

eighth graders joined EPA’s Operation Clean Below, a river cleanup of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill

River. While the school transported the students to the sites, EPA volunteers arranged, paid for,

and hosted the day’s activities.

Chinatown Stenciling Project

EPA sponsored a stenciling project at Holy

Redeemer that aimed to reduce waste dumping in storm

drains. The graduating class of eighth graders stenciled

the words “Dump No Waste—Drains to River” in both

English and Chinese on sidewalks adjacent to storm

drains in the Chinatown district. “While other kids are

misusing spray paint, our students have the opportunity

to leave a positive message,” said Lisa Canceiliere, principal of Holy Redeemer. A major concern in the community was the dumping of hazardous materials such as paint,

motor oil, and pesticides into these storm drains, which

lead directly to the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers. Other

sponsors of the project included the Philadelphia

Environmental Council and the Philadelphia Water

Department.

Summer Environmental Development

Program

For the past three years, EPA’s summer program for

middle school students included four Asian American students from Holy Redeemer. The program is an environmental leadership effort that uses a holistic

approach to teach inner-city students about environmental issues prevalent in urban communities.

The program’s goal is for students to take back what they have learned and impart these lessons to

other members of the community, particularly elementary schoolchildren.

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Source: EPA Region 3
Protecting Coral Reefs in the Pacific

In the Pacific Islands, coral reef ecosystems are ecologically and economically important to

coastal and island inhabitants. Recent grants from EPA’s Science to Achieve Results (STAR)

Program are providing scientists at the University of Guam and the University of Hawai’i with the

opportunity to study the health of coral reef ecosystems in these Pacific Island communities.

Coral reefs buffer the shore against wave damage and erosion, support a variety of fish and

plant species, and provide income from recreational and tourist dollars. These ecosystems also sustain fisheries that supply food and employment to Pacific Islanders.

The new STAR grant, worth nearly $800,000, will enable the universities to assess pollutants

coming from land- and watershed-based activities and study the human influences affecting the

health of coral reefs. The research also

will examine the societal costs of pollution to Pacific Island communities in

terms of water quality and protection

of marine resources. The results will

provide information to help EPA and

Pacific Island communities develop

more sustainable watershed management policies.

Dr. Robert Richmond of the

University of Guam has received previous grants to study the effects of

human-made disturbances on coral

reefs and related marine resources. The STAR grant awarded to Dr. Richmond and Dr. Michael

Hamnett, Director of the Social Science Research Institute at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa,

along with Dr. Eric Wolanski of the Australian Institute of Marine Science, will build upon results

from Dr. Richmond’s previous work. The competitively awarded, peer-reviewed grants are administered by EPA’s National Center for Environmental Research and Quality Assurance.

Protection of coral reefs and marine areas, specifically the Northwest Hawai’ian coral reef, are

mandated under Executive Orders (EO) 13089, 13158, and 13178. EO 13089, Coral Reef

Protection, was signed in June 1998 and directs federal agencies to protect and enhance the conditions of coral reef ecosystems. EO 13158, Marine Protected Areas, was signed in May 2000 and

authorizes the creation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and dedicates federal agencies to protect

resources in the marine environment. EO 13178, Northwestern Hawai’ian Islands Coral Reef

Ecosystem Reserve, establishes a reserve in the Northwestern Hawai’ian Islands to preserve the

integrity of the coral reef ecosystem. This EO is amended by EO 13196, which finalizes the

reserve rules. EPA’s grants to the University of Hawai’i and the University of Guam are helping

promote the goals of these EOs and develop sustainable policies to foster healthy reef ecosystems

in Hawai’i and Guam.

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Raising Environmental Awareness 

in America’s Island State

An EPA field office in Hawai’i is helping kindergartners to college kids learn more about local

and international environmental issues. The Pacific Islands Contact Office (PICO), in existence

since EPA was formed, provides a variety of public affairs services to Hawai’ian residents, including environmental education.

According to Dean Higuchi of PICO, “we play a part in creating an environmental awareness, in fostering environmental education in the schools and colleges, and in educating the general public about EPA’s programs and activities.”

America’s only island state possesses a diverse but fragile natural environment, ranging from sandy beaches to

mountain tops. The island is also

home to a multitude of plant and

wildlife species, including endangered

species and species found no where else

in the world. PICO staff help students

learn about local environmental stresses

and what they can do to protect the

natural resources in their communities.

PICO also helps students learn

about national and global issues. PICO

staff distribute EPA educational materials on a variety of subjects, from solid waste to clean air.

They also visit schools personally to talk about EPA and what can be done to protect the environment. Participating in school environmental projects and fairs is another key activity.

In addition to native Hawai’ians, people from a variety of Asian groups live in the island

state. According to 2000 U.S. Census Bureau data, counties in Hawai’i garnered the top four

spots in the United States in terms of percentage of Asian Americans in the population. Asian

Americans made up 58 to 64 percent of the total population in these counties.

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Asian Pacific American Organization Honors EPA . . . .35

Tapping a Valuable Workforce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

College Relations Program With 

University of Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

EPA Partners with ECO to Encourage

Environmental Careers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

AAPIs remain underrepresented in many professions and job series. EPA is evaluating its diversity profile to determine how to address this issue in

its own workplace.

EPA believes that maintaining a diverse workforce is the best way for the Agency to achieve its

mission. EPA is committed to hiring and supporting talented and committed professionals who

understand the Agency’s mission and will work to

achieve it.

The Agency has made significant progress in

attracting AAPI professionals through a variety of

outreach efforts. For example, in recognition of its

achievements, EPA received the Federal Asian

Pacific American Council’s Outstanding Agency of

the Year Award in 2000 for nurturing and promoting the AAPI component of its workforce (see page

35).

To continue its progress in developing the

AAPI segment of its workforce, EPA has several

initiatives under way. For example, the Agency’s

Senior Environmental Employment (SEE)

Program works with the National Asian Pacific

Center on Aging, which recruits, screens, hires, and

pays workers in EPA Regions 5 and 10. EPA also is

strengthening its college recruitment and professional development efforts for AAPIs.

The following articles demonstrate EPA’s

efforts to nurture the professional development of

AAPIs in its workforce.

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Asian Pacific American Organization 

Honors EPA

In 2000, EPA was one of two agencies to receive the Federal Asian Pacific American Council’s

(FAPAC’s) Outstanding Agency of the Year Award. The award recognizes the work of federal agencies to improve representation, promotion, and recognition of Asian Pacific Americans (APA). For

many years, FAPAC has given a similar award to recognize individual contributions to the APA

community, but this is the first year an award was presented to honor the management achievements of

agencies.

Nominations are reviewed by a FAPAC selection

committee that picks one or more winners based on

their achievements in workforce diversity. EPA was

nominated by the Agency’s National Asian Pacific

American Council, a group of employees representing

the APA special emphasis program.

“In large part, EPA won because the selection

committee was very impressed with the AAPI program,” said Mike Maroof, FAPAC’s chair. “Through

this program, the Agency has shown continual

improvement in its efforts to recruit and advance

APAs.” Other EPA efforts that impressed the committee included hiring the first

National Special Emphasis

Program manager for AAPI

employees and conducting

an AAPI quality of worklife survey. FAPAC also

chose EPA because of an 83 percent increase in the number of APAs

holding higher-level positions at the Agency during a 7-year period.

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FAPAC at a Glance...

Founded in 1985, FAPAC is an interagency organization of

APA employees representing more than 100 federal agencies

and the District of Columbia (DC) government. The council promotes equal opportunity and cultural diversity for APAs and pursues their interests and representation in both the federal and

DC governments.

In large part, EPA

won because the

selection committee

was very impressed

with the AAPI program. Through this

program, the Agency

has shown continual

improvement in its

efforts to recruit and

advance APAs.

—Mike Maroof, 

FAPAC chair

Mike Maroof, FAPAC chair, presents the Outstanding Agency

of the Year Award to EPA. Joan Fidler, director of management operations for EPA’s Office of International Activities,

accepts the award on the Agency’s behalf.

Source: FAPAC
Tapping a Valuable Workforce

There’s never been a better time for an older adult who’s looking for a full- or part-time job.

For the past 2 decades, EPA’s Senior Environmental Employee (SEE) program has been working

to harness the talent, experience, and skills possessed by individuals 55 years and older to help the

Agency efficiently respond to emergency situations and short-term projects.

“More than ever, employers are recognizing the value of older workers of all nationalities,”

according to Clayton Fong, Executive Director of the National Asian Pacific Center on Aging

(NAPCA). “We have positions opening up all the time in the senior employment programs—such

as SEE—that we administer, and I don’t expect that to change.”

SEE functions through a series of grants awarded to six national aging organizations, including NAPCA. Through employment programs, multilingual community forums, and health care

education, NAPCA has accumulated more than 20 years of experience helping senior citizens

remain productive members of their communities.

Under the SEE program, NAPCA recruits, screens, hires, and pays salaries to the workers in

EPA Regions 5 and 10. SEE workers are not federal employees, nor are they employees of the

grantee organization, rather they are Enrollees in the SEE program.

Hundreds of SEE Enrollees currently work in EPA offices nationwide

at part- and full-time assignments,

depending on their interests and the

needs of the EPA office. Assignments

range from clerical and secretarial

support to highly technical positions

such as chemical engineers, public

relations specialists, and environmental investigators.

NAPCA’s Region 5 Project

Director Mei Lin said the program

provides workers with benefits aside

from employment. “When you work

in the environmental field, you

become aware of the environmental

issues affecting your area, and you

bring this knowledge back and share

it with your community,” Lin said.

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SEE Enrollee Receives Award

In 1999, Tseh Lin Tsen, one of NAPCA’s SEE

Enrollees, received the “Claude D. Pepper

Distinguished Service Award” during Chicago’s 18th

Annual Older Workers Awards ceremony. This

award is presented annually to distinguished older

workers in the Chicago area, and NAPCA was

thrilled to have Tsen chosen as one of six finalists. 

Tsen started at NAPCA as a participant in another

employment program. He later attended classes at

Harold Washington College, earning certifications in

Accounting and Computer Information systems and

subsequently became involved in EPA’s SEE program. According to Project Director Mei Lin, who

nominated Tsen for the award, he has helped others

with computer technology and played an important

role in upgrading the computer system at the EPA

Safe Water Drinking Branch.
College Relations Program With University of

Arizona

Attracting skilled workers from diverse backgrounds is a challenge EPA takes very seriously.

For a little more than 10 years, EPA has worked with the University of Arizona, an institution at

which 1,800 students are AAPIs, to recruit qualified and culturally diverse people into the

Agency’s workforce.

EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER) works in partnership with

the University of Arizona under the College Relations Program, which includes a summer internship program funded through an EPA cooperative agreement. The EPA/University of Arizona

internship program is entering its seventh year; EPA has funded internships for 66 undergraduate

and graduate students, of which 14 percent have been AAPIs.

Typically, OSWER’s interns work in EPA Headquarters and regional hazardous waste management program offices. The internship program provides students with an opportunity to apply

their academic skills and knowledge in a professional environment. Students receive academic

credit for participating in the program.

EPA Partners with ECO to Encourage

Environmental Careers

Although the number of job opportunities in the environmental field is steadily increasing,

the workforce still lacks cultural diversity—and AAPIs are among those underrepresented. To

address this issue, EPA has partnered with the Environmental Careers Organization (ECO), 

a national nonprofit educational organization. ECO recently launched its Diversity Initiative,

which matches qualified individuals from minority populations with paid environmental internships. Through this effort, ECO has successfully placed interns at organizations across the country,

including EPA.

For example, EPA offered a variety of internships through ECO, including positions entailing

research, analysis, economics, data sampling and monitoring, marketing, outreach, budget and

financing, and database management.

At EPA, interns work in all branches of the Agency and at regional offices nationwide. EPA

hopes the internships will encourage students to pursue environmental careers after graduation.

According to Linda Smith at EPA, one of the advantages of the partnership with ECO is that

it allows EPA managers to experience working with people of different backgrounds. “I think this

is a great program—it’s really made a difference in the diversity of ideas and solutions to environmental issues,” Smith said.

EPA and ECO are also working together to support professional training for students pursuing advanced degrees in environmentally related fields. Through this effort, students majoring in

technical disciplines at minority academic institutions are eligible to receive full tuition, a stipend,

and a 12-week internship at organizations such as EPA.

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One of EPA’s goals is to promote environmental awareness among non-English-speaking populations in the United States. U.S. Census Bureau estimates indicate that of the top 10 ethnic

groups in the U.S. that characterize their abilities to speak English as “less than very well,” 5 are of

Asian/Pacific Islander descent. As an organization committed to serving this nation’s citizens, EPA

recognizes the need to reach the vast Asian American and Pacific Islander community through

documents, correspondence, and outreach materials written in the appropriate AAPI language.

EPA currently lists more than 30 outreach materials that have been translated into numerous

AAPI languages. Topics include environmental justice, indoor-air quality, fish consumption, lead

contamination in the home, pesticides, and pollution prevention. EPA also encourages more programs to identify informational materials for translation into Asian languages.

For a selection of EPA publications written in AAPI languages, visit the Asian American and

Pacific Islander Initiative Web site at <www.epa.gov/aapi>.

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EPA Regions

8

7 5

6

10

9

4

3

2 1 10

9

2

Each EPA Regional Office is responsible within its selected states for carrying out the

Agency’s programs, incorporating regional needs into decision-making, and implementing federal

environmental laws. 

AS

GU

HI

AK

OR

WA

ID

NV

CA

AZ NM

TX

OK AR

LA

UT

CO

WY

MT ND

SD

NE

KS MO

IA

MN

WI

IL IN

MI

OH

KY

TN

MS AL GA

FL

SC

NC

PR

WV VA

PA

ME

VT

NH

NY

MA

RI

CT

NJ

DE

MD

DC
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Visit the Asian American & Pacific Islander Initiative Web site at

<www.epa.gov/aapi>.
40

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Grant Program

Solid Waste

Management

Assistance

Purpose

To promote use

of integrated

solid waste

management

systems to

solve municipal

solid waste

generations

and management problems

at the local,

regional, and

national levels.

Eligible 

Applicants

Nonprofit entities, government agencies,

and Indian

tribes.

Groups affected by

an NPL site. All

groups must be

incorporated as

nonprofit organizations.

Award Amounts Fiscal

Year 2001

$5,000 to

$250,000

Up to $50,000

Contact 

Information

Linda Kutcher, 

Office of 

Solid Waste, 

703 308-6114

Lois Gartner,

Superfund

Community Outreach

Center, 

703 603-8889

To enable groups of

individuals affected

by Superfund

National Priorities

List (NPL) sites to

obtain technical

assistance in interpreting site information.

Superfund 

Technical

Assistance

Grants

Environmenta

l Justice

Small 

Grants

Approximate

Application Period

Fiscal Year 2002

Varies Varies

Pollution

Prevention

Incentives for 

States

To support state, tribal,

and regional programs

addressing the reduction or elimination of

pollution across all environmental media: air,

land, and water.

State agencies (including

the District of Columbia),

state instrumentalities

such as universities, federally recognized tribes,

and U.S. territories and

possessions. States are

encouraged to form partnerships with local governments, businesses,

and other environmental

assistance providers.

$20,000 to $200,000

(50% matching grant

requirement) 

Christopher Kent, 

Office of Pollution

Prevention and

Toxics, 

202 260-3480

October to

February

Summary of U.S. EPA 

To provide financial assistance

to eligible community groups

and federally

recognized tribal

governments

that are working

on or plan to

carry out projects that

address environmental justice

issues.

Any affected

community

group, nonprofit

organization, university, or tribal

government.

Organizations

must be incorporated to receive

funds.

Up to $20,000

each

Varies

Delta Valente, 

Office of

Environmental

Justice, 

202 564-2594

Local, tribal, or

state education

agencies, colleges and universities, nonprofit

organizations,

state environmental agencies, and

noncommercial

educational broadcasting agencies.

Approximately

$1,000 to $100,000

Diane Berger,

Office of

Environmental

Education, 

202 260-8619

To provide financial support for

projects that

design, demonstrate, or disseminate

environmental

education practices, methods, or

techniques.

Environmental

Education

September to

November
41

States and US territories,

political subdivisions (including cities, towns, and counties) and federally recognized Indian tribes.

States, local governments, federally

recognized Indian

tribes, territories

and possessions,

public and private

universities and colleges, hospitals,

laboratories, public

and private nonprofit institutions,

and highly qualified

individuals.

Grants are issued only for those

estuaries designated as "nationally

significant" by EPA. EPA is authorized to make grants to State, interstate, and regional water pollution

control agencies and entities,

State coastal zone management

agencies, interstate agencies,

other public and nonprofit private

agencies, institutions, organizations, and individuals (Section

320(g)(l)). Profit making organizations are not eligible for grants.

Commu

groups, 

nonprof

zations, 

ernmen

municip

governm

Up to $200,000 for 2 years $6,000 to

$1,500,000

$10,000 to $795,000 $35,000 

$135,00

Becky Brooks, Office of

Solid Waste and Emergency

Response, 202 260-8474

National Center for

Environmental

Research, 

800 490-9194

Darrell Brown,

Office of

Wetlands, Oceans,

and Watersheds

Protection, 202

260-6502

Ramona 

Office o

Children

202 260

Assessment Demonstration

Pilots "are directed toward

environmental activities preliminary to cleanup, such as

site assessments, site identification, site characterization, and site response or

cleanup planning

y

making i

consume

es.

Varies Varies per specific

research program

November to May Varies

Colleges, universities, nonprofits, training centers,

community-based job training centers, states, cities,

towns, counties, U.S. territories, and federally recognized Indian tribes.

Generally, entities with

experience in providing job

training and placement programs are invited to apply.

Up to $200,000

over 2 years

Myra Blakely, Office of

Solid Waste and

Emergency Response,

202 260-4527

fully applied to a cleanup

employing an alternative or

innovative technology.

Varies
1EPA

United StatesEnvironmental Protection AgencyAriel Rios Building1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW.Washington, DC 20460www.epa.govEPA-202-K-01-003September 2001