Epistemic Justice in Environmental Science

Sor Juana challenged who held authority to speak truth, refusing to accept institutional gatekeeping of knowledge. She embodied the struggle against epistemic injustice—the systematic denial of certain voices' credibility. Indigenous communities, Global South nations, and frontline workers possess irreplaceable climate knowledge from lived experience, yet policy-makers often privilege scientific institutions from wealthy nations. Epistemic justice in climate action means: listening to indigenous ecological practices refined over millennia; validating local observations of changing seasons and ecosystems; including affected communities as knowledge-creators, not merely subjects of study. Sor Juana's tradition demands we question who decides what counts as legitimate climate knowledge and why. She teaches that intellectual integrity requires humility—recognizing that concentrated power distorts truth. Climate justice requires decentralizing epistemic authority, amplifying voices excluded from formal science, and honoring diverse ways of knowing the Earth.