Celebrating five years of Oregon Just Transition Alliance with our first impact report
From crisis to collective power
In 2020, when the sky turned orange, wildfires rained ash, and families scrambled to find clean air and safe shelter, Oregon’s frontline leaders came together and asked, “What would it look like to build power and secure resources so our communities could survive, and even thrive, during climate disasters?”
That same year, a heat dome killed more than 100 Oregonians, COVID-19 sickened our loved ones, and racial justice uprisings exposed what frontline communities had long known, that our systems were built to leave our communities behind.
Teammates and members at the 2025 signing of the FAIR Energy Act alongside Governor Tina Kotek.
Out of that upheaval, frontline leaders from APANO, PCUN, Beyond Toxics, Rogue Climate, and Verde came together to create Oregon Just Transition Alliance: a movement led by those impacted first and worst by climate change, building power to shape a future rooted in collective care, justice, and community.
With the release of our 2020-2025 Impact Report, we’re celebrating what we’ve built in the past five years, and the power we’ve grown.
When frontline communities lead, they achieve climate action
When OJTA became an independent organization in 2020, we were a team of two with a big vision and limited resources. Our strength came from a statewide network of base-building organizations who believed frontline communities could lead Oregon’s Just Transition to a regenerative economy.
Since then, our alliance has grown to 6 full-time staff, a core team of four specialized consultants and nearly twenty member organizations representing frontline communities most impacted by the climate crisis. We practice shared governance, guided by six member organizations across the state who serve on our steering committee. Their lived experiences, voices, and needs shape every decision we make. This model ensures that our priorities, campaigns, and strategies stay grounded in what Oregon’s frontline communities identify as most urgent and necessary.
Teammates and members celebrating the 2021 Oregon Clean Energy Campaign win with Governor Kate Brown.
By ensuring Oregon’s climate action is informed by what frontline communities need and want, we’ve achieved monumental victories over the past five years. Here are two highlights:
Oregon Clean Energy Opportunity Campaign (2021): A groundbreaking campaign led by frontline communities that advanced clean energy solutions, it established a low-income rate class for Oregonians and committed Oregon to 100% clean energy by 2040, with strong labor and equity standards.
Climate Resilience Package (2023): Secured $90 million to help communities prepare for heat, smoke, and extreme weather, and passed statewide policies that decrease pollution by making homes and public spaces safer and more efficient.
These are big wins, but the work has never been easy. State budgets are shrinking, needs are growing, and communities that are already stretched thin are being asked to do even more. But Oregon has risen before, and we’ll rise again. These wins are proof that frontline communities are an essential part of the fight for climate justice, and we will not back down.
The next five years of a Just Transition in Oregon
Our next chapter begins with clarity and courage. After a year of holding community space to listen to members, stakeholders, and staff to create OJTA's new strategic framework, we set a stronger balance between advocacy and member care, grounding our work in shared purpose and collective strength.
The cover of our impact report celebrating five years of frontline leadership.
The next five years are about incubation and growth: feeding new ideas, organizing new campaigns, and nurturing partnerships, all within Oregon and across the region. Even in uncertainty, we refuse to go dormant. We choose to dream, create, and build power from the ground up. We choose to plant the seeds of a Just Transition that will bear fruit in the future, later this decade.
Our seven core values light the way: Stewardship. Justice and Equity. Self-Determination. Joy and Abundance. Intercultural Solidarity. Community-Led. Courage. They remind us that a Just Transition is rooted in how we relate to one another, collective care for our communities, and honor the people and places that sustain us.
Celebrations and gratitude
This milestone belongs to every member, partner, and funder who’s believed in community-led change. You’ve helped turn crisis into collective power.
Five years in, we’re still just beginning. With courage, joy, and love for our communities, we’ll keep building Oregon’s Just Transition, one rooted in resilience, creativity, and liberation.
The path ahead is long, but our vision is clear. Learn more about our new strategic framework, values, and wins by reading our 2020-2025 Impact Report.
