Eco-lawyer Maria leads battle for a liveable London

Maria Adebowale

Maria Adebowale, 31, is facing the biggest battle of her life: launching the first community outreach programme to tackle environmental distress in the murky residential quarters of low-income multi-ethnic inner London.

With three degrees in law, business and economics, Ms Adebowale aims to link the resources of the charitable Environmental Law Foundation (ELF) to local efforts at home and area improvement.

For her potential clients in poor environments, the ELF programme supported by the Bridge House Estate Fund will be a godsend. "By June we will be offering an advice and referral service with free consultations and low-cost legal and technical support," she says. Her newly appointed caseworker Zulekha Hosenally will manage much of the work and a 'translation link' will help people whose first language is not English.

Network
As ELF's director, Ms Adebowale leads a network of over 300 lawyers, technical consultants and experts. It stems from the work by environmentalists such as Diana Schumacher, whose father authored the eco-bible "Small is Beautiful", to defend citizens suffering the consequences of environmental damage.

Now in its seventh year "ELF has handled almost 1000 cases around the country giving help to community groups and individuals who would otherwise been unable to obtain it," she says. Most common issues are costs and conflicts over energy, water use, solid waste, site management, and transport. Risks to life and well-being are often extreme.

The idea for the London outreach programme grew from Maria's work with the Environmental Justice programme backed by Anita Roddick's Body Shop company. It produced guides to better health, adequate housing, parks and playgrounds, all major factors affecting and enriching everyday life.

Scholarly work
Ms Adebowale, of Nigerian parentage, whose publications include an article on "Earth Justice" in the prestigious Law Gazette, will also use ELF's past successes to lever results for the new programme. She will be responding to calls for protection from incinerators emitting harmful pollutants, from smelly waste tips, and from construction noise and pollution. Experience with asbestos contamination in ex-council houses in Glasgow and Birmingham, and toxic chemical contamination in land fills in north Sussex will come in handy.

Organising environmental action groups is still an unorthodox professional career for a black woman. However, Ms Adebowale shrugs aside any suggestion that she is an outdated Lady Bountiful dispensing charity to the poor and deprived. "We have a good track record of solid work, and lots of goodwill and support," she says. ELF's officers and advisors include Stephen Hockman, QC and Martin Polden, a lawyer and environmentalist, and many renowned scientists.

Minefield
The proving test will come as Ms Adebowale faces a minefield of competing forces. Inner London is a zone of conflict. Community voices and participation are often muffled by more powerful interests. These include land-hungry renewal agencies, property developers, industrialists, landowners and local authorities seeking to maximise profits from obsolescent housing stocks.

But Maria Adebowale hopes to redress the balance in favour of the most needy. Armed with visions of eco-justice, she insists that her efforts will help improve the urban habitat of inner city Black, Asian and low-income households. She strongly defends her pioneering ideas by saying "Giving people the knowledge and confidence needed to safeguard their environment is of greatest importance. Our methods are recognised as central to the future of an improved system of community environmental advice."

Contact details: Environmental Law Foundation, Tel.: 0171-404-1030; Fax: 0171-404-1032