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Building Interdisciplinary Partnerships for Community-Engaged Environmental Health Research in Appalachian Virginia

Author

Listed:
  • Emily Satterwhite

    (Appalachian Studies, Department of Religion and Culture, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Shannon Elizabeth Bell

    (Department of Sociology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Linsey C. Marr

    (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Christopher K. Thompson

    (School of Neuroscience, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Aaron J. Prussin

    (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Lauren Buttling

    (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Jin Pan

    (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

  • Julia M. Gohlke

    (Department of Population Health Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA)

Abstract

This article describes a collaboration among a group of university faculty, undergraduate students, local governments, local residents, and U.S. Army staff to address long-standing concerns about the environmental health effects of an Army ammunition plant. The authors describe community-responsive scientific pilot studies that examined potential environmental contamination and a related undergraduate research course that documented residents’ concerns, contextualized those concerns, and developed recommendations. We make a case for the value of resource-intensive university–community partnerships that promote the production of knowledge through collaborations across disciplinary paradigms (natural/physical sciences, social sciences, health sciences, and humanities) in response to questions raised by local residents. Our experience also suggests that enacting this type of research through a university class may help promote researchers’ adoption of “epistemological pluralism”, and thereby facilitate the movement of a study from being “multidisciplinary” to “transdisciplinary”.

Suggested Citation

  • Emily Satterwhite & Shannon Elizabeth Bell & Linsey C. Marr & Christopher K. Thompson & Aaron J. Prussin & Lauren Buttling & Jin Pan & Julia M. Gohlke, 2020. "Building Interdisciplinary Partnerships for Community-Engaged Environmental Health Research in Appalachian Virginia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(5), pages 1-16, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:5:p:1695-:d:328758
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    Cited by:

    1. Monika M. Derrien & Christopher Zuidema & Sarah Jovan & Amanda Bidwell & Weston Brinkley & Paulina López & Roseann Barnhill & Dale J. Blahna, 2020. "Toward Environmental Justice in Civic Science: Youth Performance and Experience Measuring Air Pollution Using Moss as a Bio-Indicator in Industrial-Adjacent Neighborhoods," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-18, October.

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