Change for what? Understanding youth notions of environmental justice in an urban neighborhood context

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 7:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: Reimagining Community-Based Educational Research

Abstract

Investigations of youth voice are an essential component of new visions for educational research. As researchers and policymakers must consider changes inside and out of schools for more just and sustainable futures, it must be informed by those most affected by the outcome: young people themselves. As such, this research explores young people’s descriptions of their home neighborhoods and the environmental justice concerns resulting from their descriptions within the context of an urban area known as the birthplace of redlining: Baltimore City. Using inductive and typological analysis of interviews with 94 young people ages 14-23 across 33 Baltimore area zip codes, the authors highlight environmental justice mattering and the wealth of knowledge young people possess in addressing social-spatial inequities.

Authors

• Lisa D. Nehring, Johns Hopkins University

• Richard Lofton, Johns Hopkins University