ABOUT US
The Environmental Justice (EJ) Research Group studies environmental injustice in low-income communities and communities of color, focusing on neighborhood oil drilling, beauty product exposures, air pollution, and cumulative health burdens. We work with community partners and train undergraduate students in community-based research.
Join us! We are an interdisciplinary research team and welcome research members from diverse academic majors. We love undergraduate research and welcome undergraduate students who are committed to learning about and who want to participate in community-engaged environmental justice research. Paid and for-credit undergraduate research is possible during the academic year and the summer. I am accepting applications for postdoctoral and PhD students. If you are interested in joining our team as a doctoral student, postdoc, or master's student, please email Bhavna about your research ideas and how you might intersect with our ongoing projects.
Community Research
Urban Oil Drilling
Oil and gas drilling in Los Angeles began in 1892 and has not stopped since. Today, approximately ⅓ of Los Angeles County residents live less than a mile from an active drilling site. While many Angelenos live near oil sites, low-income residents and residents of color in South Los Angeles and Wilmington experience the worst health impacts of living near oil drilling because the sites in their neighborhoods are often closer to their homes and have fewer safety protections than sites in other parts of the city. Urban oil drilling in Los Angeles is an environmental injustice that harms the health and well-being of residents.
Consumer Product Exposures
Environmental justice (EJ) aims to create healthy, safe environments for all, regardless of race, income, or identity. It addresses disproportionate harm faced by BIPOC communities and recognizes that this environmental racism is rooted in the historical context and present-day continuation of racism and colonialism. Led by grassroots efforts, this fight collaborates with several other movements including workers' rights, civil rights, environmentalism, and feminism.
Air Pollution
Air pollution is a concern across the Los Angeles metropolitan area but has a disproportionate impact on communities of color who are more likely to live and work near factories and highways that emit toxic chemicals into the air. The UCSB EJ research group works with local communities to study the impact of air pollution and advocate for policies that will reduce the toxic burden of air pollution on EJ communities.
Contact
Bhavna Shamasunder
Mellichamp Chair in Racially Just, Resilient and Sustainable City Futures
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