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Van Horne YO, Alcala CS, Peltier RE, Quintana PJE, Seto E, Gonzales M, Johnston JE, Montoya LD, Quirós-Alcalá L, Beamer PI. An applied environmental justice framework for exposure science. JOURNAL OF EXPOSURE SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 2023; 33:1-11. [PMID: 35260805 PMCID: PMC8902490 DOI: 10.1038/s41370-022-00422-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Revised: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
On the 30th anniversary of the Principles of Environmental Justice established at the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit in 1991 (Principles of Environmental Justice), we continue to call for these principles to be more widely adopted. We propose an environmental justice framework for exposure science to be implemented by all researchers. This framework should be the standard and not an afterthought or trend dismissed by those who believe that science should not be politicized. Most notably, this framework should be centered on the community it seeks to serve. Researchers should meet with community members and stakeholders to learn more about the community, involve them in the research process, collectively determine the environmental exposure issues of highest concern for the community, and develop sustainable interventions and implementation strategies to address them. Incorporating community "funds of knowledge" will also inform the study design by incorporating the knowledge about the issue that community members have based on their lived experiences. Institutional and funding agency funds should also be directed to supporting community needs both during the "active" research phase and at the conclusion of the research, such as mechanisms for dissemination, capacity building, and engagement with policymakers. This multidirectional framework for exposure science will increase the sustainability of the research and its impact for long-term success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 2001 N. Soto Street, Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA.
| | - Cecilia S Alcala
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 17 East 102 Street, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Richard E Peltier
- School of Public Health & Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 686 North Pleasant Street, Room 175, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Penelope J E Quintana
- School of Public Health, San Diego State University, 5500 Campanile Dr., San Diego, CA, 92182, USA
| | - Edmund Seto
- Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Roosevelt One Building, 4225 Roosevelt Way NE, Suite 100, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
| | - Melissa Gonzales
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, MSC10 5550 Epidemiology, Albuquerque, NM, 87111, USA
| | - Jill E Johnston
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 2001 N. Soto Street, Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA
| | | | - Lesliam Quirós-Alcalá
- Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, 615N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA
| | - Paloma I Beamer
- Department of Community, Environment and Policy, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, 1295N. Martin Ave., Tucson, AZ, 85724, USA
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