IJERPH, Vol. 16, Pages 4010: Working with Institutional Stakeholders: Propositions for Alternative Approaches to Community Engagement
IJERPH, Vol. 16, Pages 4010: Working with Institutional Stakeholders: Propositions for Alternative Approaches to Community Engagement
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health doi: 10.3390/ijerph16204010
Authors:
Cox
Chung
Hamm
Zwickle
Cruz
Dearing
Community engagement is a vital aspect of addressing environmental contamination and remediation. In the United States, the Superfund Research Program (SRP) forms groups of academic researchers from the social and physical sciences into Community Engagement Cores (CECs) and Research Translation Cores (RTCs), which focus on various aspects of informing and working with communities during and through the resolution of environmental crises. While this work typically involves engaging directly with members of affected communities, no two situations are the same. In some cases, alternative approaches to community engagement can be more appropriate for community improvement than traditional approaches. In particular, when research teams become involved in contamination crises at a late point in the process, their contributions can be better directed at supporting and reinforcing the work of institutional stakeholders charged with remediating pollution. Relevant factors include issue fatigue among a local population, and contamination that is due to a major employer. Supported by literature and experience, we offer several propositions that we believe lay out conditions that warrant such an ...
Source: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Cox Chung Hamm Zwickle Cruz Dearing Tags: Communication Source Type: research