NASA Spent Millions on ‘Environmental Justice’ and ‘Equity’ Grants Despite Budget Woes

NASA Spent Millions on ‘Environmental Justice’ and ‘Equity’ Grants Despite Budget Woes

By Robert Schmad

DAILY CALLER NEWS FOUNDATION—The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has shelled out millions in awards to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as “environmental justice,” despite recently laying off staff and shuttering space programs due to budgetary shortfalls.

NASA has allocated roughly $10 million to pay out dozens of grants and contracts aimed at advancing some element of environmental justice or DEI since 2020, federal spending records show. The agency is multiple billions of dollars short of the funding required to complete its current missions, has fired hundreds of people working on its Mars missions over budgetary concerns, and may not have enough funding to maintain a multibillion-dollar space telescope, according to multiple Washington Post reports.

“The environmental justice movement focuses on ensuring communities receive equitable protection from natural and human-induced environmental hazards,” NASA’s webpage on equity and environmental justice reads. “It embodies the principle that all communities should be heard and represented in decision making.”

Share: