An Inland Empire environmental justice advocate has won a global honor for her work convincing California to adopt rules limiting toxic emissions from trains and diesel trucks.
Andrea Vidaurre, co-founder and senior policy analyst at the San Bernardino-based , is the North American recipient of the 2024 , given to one person from each inhabited continent.
First awarded in 1989, the prize “honors the achievements and leadership of grassroots environmental activists from around the world, inspiring all of us to take action to protect our planet,” a foundation news release states.
According to the foundation, Vidaurre’s “grassroots leadership persuaded the to adopt, in the spring 2023, two historic transportation regulations that significantly limit trucking and rail emissions.”
Trucks and trains supply the Inland Empire’s massive logistics industry. Activists say toxic emissions from those vehicles are responsible for the region’s notorious poor air quality contributing to cancer, heart disease, asthma and other health problems.
