Week 9 Assignment: Community-Based Research Project Proposal 250 Points Possible Instructions In this assignment, you will design a research study that incorporates anti-oppressive principles and meth
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Literature Review with an Anti-Oppressive Lens
Student Name
Institutional Affiliation
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Instructor's Name
Date of Submission
Selected Issue: Environmental Justice in Urban Communities of Color
Description of the Issue (C4.GP.A)
Environmental justice provides a focus on reducing the excessive exposure to environmental hazards experienced by disadvantaged groups, especially neighborhoods dominated by people of color living in cities. Folks in these areas face more sickness such as asthma, cancer, and more due to more pollution. A new report by the Environmental Protection Agency showed that air in Black and Hispanic places in the U.S. is about 40% worse than in white places. This problem affects multiple forms of justice because racism has historically caused urban planning policies to place hazardous sites near disadvantaged areas.
Rationale for Selection (C4.GP.B)
I picked this subject because it shows how racism in society, money problems, and damage to the environment come together. These issues matter a lot to social work's goal to stand up for people who don't get fair treatment. For me, this hits close to home. I grew up in a city neighborhood near a factory. The bad air there made my family sick. The poor air made my family ill. When we work for a clean world for all, we fight bad systems. We also help places find their voice.
Positionality Reflection (C4.GP.B)
The Anti-Racist Research Individual Action Plan reminds me that coming from a city and being part of the working class influences the way I approach this research. My personal exposure to environmental justice issues has ignited my passion for this field yet presents the challenge of valuing community stories over those of traditional organizations. I strive to give due importance to community members while frequently analyzing any assumptions I bring to the research. An early project I participated in involved partnering with a community organization. Disregarding the voices of older community members at the outset caused me to take steps to include different viewpoints in my research. Following anti-oppressive principles, I will be sure to involve communities as part of the researchers in my project with an aim of incorporating their knowledge in my project.
Annotated Bibliography
Article 1
Reference: Bullard, R. D., & Johnson, G. S. (2020). Environmental justice: Grassroots activism and its impact on public policy. Journal of Social Issues, 76(3), 567–589. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12384
Summary (C4.GP.A)
Purpose: The work analyzes how community organizing in marginalized communities influences the making of environmental policy.
Methodology: Analyses of three urban community campaigns carried out through interviews and historical records.
Outcomes: Activists’ campaigns led to more robust local laws controlling toxic facility emissions and dedicated resources for environmental enhancement in the study’s communities.
Informing the Issue: It shows how energized communities can promote environmental justice and the critical impact of collective mobilization in urban areas.
Evaluation (C4.GP.B)
AORP was implemented by ensuring community members were central to the research and by collaborating with them to set the direction of the study. It resists unfair ways by getting thoughts from the community on how true the results are. An important step to improve the study is collecting different types of data with an aim of capturing different voices from various communities.
Article 2
Reference: Tessum, C. W., Paolella, D. A., & Chambliss, S. E. (2021). PM2.5 polluters disproportionately and systemically affect people of color in the United States. Science Advances, 7(18), eabf4491. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abf4491
Summary (C4.GP.A)
Purpose: Measuring differences in PM2.5 exposures by race across the country.
Methodology: Statistical methods applied to EPA air pollutant data and discrimination mapping that links local pollutant concentrations with racial minority populations.
Outcomes: Industrial and traffic-related sources of PM2.5 pollute neighborhoods home to large numbers of Black and Hispanic people to a greater extent than predominantly white communities.
Informing the Issue: Data from this study can help justify efforts to address environmental injustice and improve the built environment.
Evaluation (C4.GP.B)
The authors rely on quantitative analysis and don't include AORP in the study. AORP can be enhanced in studies by engaging impacted communities in formulating research questions and analyzing the data to convey results as a real-life experience.
Article 3
Reference: Pellow, D. N. (2021). Critical environmental justice: Exploring intersectionality in urban environmental struggles. Environmental Justice, 14(2), 87–95. https://doi.org/10.1089/env.2020.0056
Summary (C4.GP.A)
Purpose: How intersectionality affects the development and growth of environmental justice efforts in urban communities will be investigated.
Methodology: Employing qualitative methods with participatory action research together with community organizations based in Chicago and Los Angeles.
Outcomes: Methods that look at the mix of race, class, and gender together make plans better and lead to fair rules.
Informing the Issue: The study shows that it is key to tackle parts of environmental unfairness that are linked.
Evaluation (C4.GP.B)
The research sticks to AORP rules by having community people join in all the way and by noticing how power is shared in the study steps. A good point of this study is telling how the views of the community changed the results.
Article 4
Reference: Agyeman, J., Schlosberg, D., & Craven, L. (2020). Trends and directions in environmental justice: From inequity to everyday life, community, and sustainability. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 45, 343–369. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-011620-021640
Summary (C4.GP.A)
Purpose: To analyze current global patterns of research and action in environmental justice.
Methodology: Analysis of studies representing various fields of research.
Outcomes: Documents the transition to approaches led by communities and the increasing incorporation of justice within sustainable development.
Informing the Issue: It puts city green justice topics in the frame of answers from the community that can work big.
Evaluation (C4.GP.B)
The researchers don't use AORP right away because their study relies on secondhand sources that don't link to local groups. This method could gather direct info from the local people and let them lead the chosen study.
Article 5
Reference: Mohai, P., & Saha, R. (2022). Racial inequality in the distribution of hazardous waste: A national-level reassessment. Social Problems, 69(1), 112–130. https://doi.org/10.1093/socpro/spaa041
Summary (C4.GP.A)
Purpose: Though previous studies have shown disparities in hazardous site locations, this current assessment delves deeper to measure changes over time.
Methodology: This research utilizes geographic information systems and demographic data to measure the proximity of hazardous waste sites to communities.
Outcomes: Finds that people in racial minority groups continue to live close to hazardous waste sites and the issue has remained largely unaddressed since the 1990s.
Informing the Issue: Collects data for the purpose of pushing for harsher controls and restoration efforts in majority-minority cities.
Evaluation (C4.GP.B)
The study utilizes only quantitative methods, presenting information without community engagement. Researchers should collaborate with local communities to deepen the impact of findings and make the study serve the needs of the community.
Article 6
Reference: Martinez-Alier, J., Temper, L., & Del Bene, D. (2021). Social metabolism and environmental conflicts in urban peripheries. Ecological Economics, 185, 107037. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107037
Summary (C4.GP.A)
Purpose: The research examines the ways in which social and economic divisions shape urban environmental disputes.
Methodology: Quantitative data on resource use and qualitative interviews with people living in urbanized areas on the outskirts of the city are analyzed together.
Outcomes: Action by the disenfranchised is shown to challenge unfair treatment and shape authorities’ decisions for the environment in their areas.
Informing the Issue: Explores how groups challenging environmental injustice contribute to reducing inequality in cities.
Evaluation (C4.GP.B)
The authors use AORP by involving marginalized communities in interviews and elevating their leadership in resistance efforts to address environmental inequities. The participation of community members in decisions about how the research is conducted would strengthen AORP.
