The Price of Plenty

Information coming soon. 

Sunnyside RNG Biodigester

• Co-led educational and community outreach to inform the community around the impacts of potentially the biggest biodigester in the whole United States.

• Partnered with community leaders and organizations to lead a public comment initiative at the YCAA to help the community share their concerns around the biodigester.

Join us in ensuring a clean and healthy environment for our families!

• Be notified for future free events that are informative.

• Act and share your stories.

• Join our environmental justice advocate team.

• Be part of the change.

→ If you are interested email maricela@weareella.org with your name and phone number.

Participatory Grant for the Model Toxic Control Act in Partnership with WCA

• Engaging community around contaminated schools in Yakima

• Co-developed community event in Yakima with over 30 participants discussing important themes and engaging discussion around priorities

• Help develop educational materials for community members to use around advocacy.

Photo credit: Mallori Pryse with WCA

Lower Yakima Valley May Day March 2026

• Collaborated with the United Farm Workers to organize the first-ever May Day March in Sunnyside. 

• Collaborated with several organizations like WCA, PoderlatinX, UFW Foundation, and Rural Americans United 

• Highlighting hardships faced by our farm workers due to environmental issues.

• Over 25 resource tables and vendors, including free local resources.

• Supporting local artists, youth singers, ballet folklorico, and Banda.

• Free children’s and family activities.

• Raffle free prizes.

Partnered Events/Initiatives

ELLA works with many allies because we are stronger together. We recognize the full worth of our partnerships and our shared values. We welcome the opportunity to listen to partner expertise and solutions while leveraging each other’s power and reach, especially around Environmental Justice.

2026 Yakima Valley Environmental Justice Lobby Day

• Partnered with many Central Washington organizations including:
  • APIC
  • WCA
  • PoderLatinX
  • Latino Community Fund

• Transported over 45 young people and adults to Olympia free of charge. 

• We also provided Spanish translation, food, and supplies free of charge.

• Met with senators and state representatives to discuss our environmental justice priorities.

• Rallied to suport environmental issues in our community.

• Co-developed lobbying curricula and conducted training.

Community Listening Sessions

• Community-led discussion leading environmental priorities.

• Attendance from YHD, Ecology, and DOH employees.

• Free, curated environmental justice tools and educational materials related to communities’ experiences.

• Free Spanish interpretation, food, and childcare provided.

• Curating local spaces for community.

• Community compensation from DOH.

Voices For a Healthy Environment: Environmental Justice Podcast Episodes

• Launched seven podcast episodes and more. 

• Themes included
  • Environmental issues in the Lower Yakima Valley Community
  • State Agency resources
  • How to be civically engaged 
  • Community mobilization and advocacy work
  • Personal stories from community members

The Heal Community Capacity provided amazing resources that have opened pipelines for our community to engage with environmental justice. Since the conclusion of this grant, we continue to work with the community because of the urgency, need, and hope that our frontline community faces. Environmental issues that we face because of exploitative industries that continue to contaminate our air, food, and water have resulted in many health disparities in our families. That is why we have continued these initiatives through the advocate team, lobby day, the May Day March, and partner initiatives.

You can find our episodes on Spotify and Youtube: 

Spotify Podcast: Mujeres Por Mujeres

2025-2026 EJ Advocate Team Cohort

• Multigenerational participants

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• They identified environmental priorities in their communities to inform their projects.

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• Lobbied in Olympia, meeting with state representatives with informed agendas to pass bills connected with their environmental priorities.

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• Led and developed the May Day march in Sunnyside, WA.

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• Engaged with city council leaders from their towns around their environmental justice priorities.

2025 Yakima Valley Environmental Justice Lobby Day

• Partnered with many Central Washington organizations including:
  • WCA
  • PoderLatinX

• Transported over 35 young people and adults to Olympia free of charge.

• We also provided Spanish translation, food, and supplies free of charge. 

• Met with senators and state representatives to discuss our environmental justice priorities.

• Rallied to support environmental issues in our community.

• Co-developed lobbying curricula and conducted training.

Understanding our Communities’ Environmental Priorities

• Over 600 bilingual surveys were conducted across the Lower Yakima Valley, including in the following areas:
  • Grandview, Mabton, Sunnyside, and Granger.

• Six focus groups with a total of 60 participants.

• Financial compensation was offered for completed surveys.
• The results indicated:
  • A lack of understanding of the HEAL Act
  • A lack of trust in state agencies
  • Many respondents felt unsafe in their environments.
  • Lack of job protection

• This enabled us to develop our programs throughout the year.

• We listened to community members' testimonials about the environmental impacts they had experienced.
• The results indicated:
  • 84% of respondents believed that community members should have a say in environmental decisions, which is far higher than in the initial surveys.
  • Community members became more aware of environmental issues.
  • The survey results were analyzed by Deanna Gutierrez.