Environmental Justice Research: Contemporary Issues and Emerging Topics.

Sara Grineski,Timothy Collins,Jayajit Chakraborty

doi:10.3390/ijerph13111072

Abstract

Environmental justice (EJ) research seeks to document and redress the disproportionate environmental burdens and benefits associated with social inequalities. Although its initial focus was on disparities in exposure to anthropogenic pollution, the scope of EJ research has expanded. In the context of intensifying social inequalities and environmental problems, there is a need to further strengthen the EJ research framework and diversify its application. This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) incorporates 19 articles that broaden EJ research by considering emerging topics such as energy, food, drinking water, flooding, sustainability, and gender dynamics, including issues in Canada, the UK, and Eastern Europe. Additionally, the articles contribute to three research themes: (1) documenting connections between unjust environmental exposures and health impacts by examining unsafe infrastructure, substance use, and children’s obesity and academic performance; (2) promoting and achieving EJ by implementing interventions to improve environmental knowledge and health, identifying avenues for sustainable community change, and incorporating EJ metrics in government programs; and (3) clarifying stakeholder perceptions of EJ issues to extend research beyond the documentation of unjust conditions and processes. Collectively, the articles highlight potentially compounding injustices and an array of approaches being employed to achieve EJ.

Highlights

Environmental justice (EJ) research seeks to document and redress the disproportionate environmental burdens and benefits associated with social inequalities
Its initial focus was on anthropogenic pollution, the scope of EJ research has expanded significantly in recent years to encompass other phenomena—for example, access to healthful food and climate change—with disparate negative impacts on particular social groups
Promoting and achieving EJ: While EJ scholars often focus on describing the injustices experienced by socially disadvantaged communities, several articles in this Special Issue direct attention toward efforts to achieve EJ through implementation of interventions to improve environmental knowledge and health [14,17], identification of avenues for sustainable and just community and societal change [1,8,9,13], and incorporation of EJ metrics in government programs [12]

Summary

Introduction

(3) clarifying stakeholder perceptions of EJ issues to extend research beyond the documentation of unjust conditions and processes. This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) incorporates 19 articles that collectively advance EJ scholarship in conceptual, methodological, and empirical terms.

Results

Conclusion