Cultivating citizen science to reduce environmental risks

Across America, environmental contamination is a persistent concern for many lower-income neighborhoods. Monica Ramirez-Andreotta focuses her research on contamination that affects everyday life. Typically scientists recruit "citizen scientists" to explore questions scientists ask. By contrast, Ramirez-Andreotta engages residents in motivating and framing research questions and policy issues, collecting data and, ultimately, reporting on the work to policymakers and working together to mitigate risks. Using an environmental justice framework, she will discuss results from her approach to democratizing science, demonstrating approaches to collecting exposure and risk data in a form that is directly relevant to participants' lives, increasing community involvement in environmental decision-making, and improving environmental health education and literacy in underserved rural and urban communities.

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