Towards environmental justice: A framework and strategic approach for implementing community based participatory research in the earth and environmental sciences

Community based participatory research (CBPR) is an approach to research that equitably involves community members, academic researchers, and stakeholders in all aspects of the research process. The goal is to enact social change and improve the well-being of the communities involved. CBPR is widely adopted in the fields of psychology and public health but to a lesser extent in the fields of Earth and environmental sciences (EES). Few clear frameworks or examples of successful implementation of CBPR in environmental research has limited its adoption in the field. We seek to fill that gap by providing a case study of a long-term project in Oakland, California. Academic researchers assessed soil contamination in urban school gardens in partnership with the Oakland Unified School District and a local environmental justice organization, Communities for a Better Environment. The effectiveness of the CBPR approach is illustrated in generating scientifically robust data while empowering community members to actively contribute to the research process. To encourage adoption of the CBPR approach in the EES fields, we provide eight strategies employed to foster meaningful collaboration between scientists and community members. Furthermore, the study introduces a novel framework, C.I.R.C.L.E, which outlines the core principles needed to build and sustain strong community partnerships and successfully implement CBPR in research. This paper contributes to the growing body of literature on the integration of community perspectives in environmental research and provides a blueprint for future endeavors seeking to address environmental issues through collaborative, community-driven approaches.