ADVANCEMENT OF THE PRACTICE
U.S. EPA defines environmental justice (EJ) as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the devel- opment, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies (U.S. EPA, 2022b). U.S. EPA and cosponsors launched the two-phase EJ Video Challenge for Students to enhance the capacity of com- munities to address local environmental and public health inequities (U.S. EPA, 2023c). In the first challenge phase, students cre- ated videos to identify and characterize an EJ issue(s) in a select community using data and publicly available tools. The winners of Phase 1 (Figure 4; U.S. EPA, 2022c) helped U.S. EPA and our partners have a better understanding of some of the EJ challenges facing vulner- able communities and how data and publicly available tools—including tools developed by U.S. EPA such as EnviroAtlas (www.epa.gov/ enviroatlas), CompTox Chemicals Dashboard (www.epa.gov/chemical-research/comptox- chemicals-dashboard), EJScreen (www.epa. gov/ejscreen), and the National Stormwa- ter Calculator (www.epa.gov/water-research/ national-stormwater-calculator)—can be used to identify and characterize EJ issues. Students enhanced their knowledge and experience working with local organizations and helped communities identify EJ issues of importance. Phase 2 of the challenge focuses on enhanc- ing the capacity of communities to address the EJ issues identified in Phase 1. To achieve this goal, students are working collaboratively with community-based organizations to develop a proposed strategy for community capacity building that demonstrates eective commu- nity engagement to address the previously identified EJ issues. The winners of Phase 2 are expected to be announced in spring 2023, with the prize money going to the students and partnering community organizations. Onward and Upward As the federal prize competition landscape grows, U.S. EPA will continue to use com- petitions and open-source innovations to fill priority gaps and increase the scale in which environmental issues are addressed. Local environmental health practitioners may find opportunities through these competitions to partner with their communities and other organizations to address their most important environmental health challenges.
FIGURE 4
Map of Phase 1 Applicant and Winner Locations of the Environmental Justice (EJ) Video Challenge for Students
Edmonton
Calgary
United States
St Lo111is
0 Dallas
Top 10 Phase 1 Winners Phase 1 Applicants
We encourage potential solvers who want to help address nationwide problems to learn more and get involved. Inviting the public to participate in scientific and technical explo- rations allows agencies and organizations to reach a multitude of problem-solvers with diverse backgrounds, skills, and perspectives who can bring new solutions to the table and inspire people into action. Acknowledgement: The authors acknowl- edge Bruce Rodan, Mary Ross, Kacee Deener, Denice Shaw, Maggie LaVay, James Gentry, Valerie Blank, Megan Christian, Sania Tong- Argao, Abby Hall, and Gail Robarge for their editorial review of this column. Corresponding Author: Heather Drumm, Innovation Coordinator, Oce of the Sci- ence Advisor, Policy and Engagement, Oce of Research and Development, U.S. Environ- mental Protection Agency, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. Email: drumm.heather@epa.gov. References Sensit Technologies. (2021). Sensit Ramp . https://gasleaksensors.com/?s=air+qual ity+monitor Thingy LLC. (2023). Thingy AQ . https:// thingy.us/wlf/
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2022a). Let’s Talk About Heat Challenge . https://www.epa.gov/innovation/lets-talk- about-heat-challenge U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2022b). Learn about environmental justice . https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/ learn-about-environmental-justice U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2022c). Phase 1 winners of the EJ Video Challenge for Students . https://www.epa. gov/innovation/phase-1-winners-ej-video- challenge-students U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2023a). EPA Challenges & Prizes . https:// www.epa.gov/innovation/epa-challenges- prizes U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2023b). Winners of the Wildland Fire Sen- sors Challenge develop air monitoring sys- tem prototypes . https://www.epa.gov/air- research/winners-wildland-fire-sensors- challenge-develop-air-monitoring-system- prototypes U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2023c). Environmental Justice Video Chal- lenge for Students . https://www.epa.gov/ innovation/environmental-justice-video- challenge-students
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Volume 85 • Number 9
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