Opening black boxes

Bibliographic Data

ID20053875
AuthorsGwen Ottinger (0000-0002-0717-149X, corresponding author)
Year2017
Pages89-100
Publication date2017-09-14
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeCHAPTER
VenueThe Routledge Handbook of Environmental Justice (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.4324/9781315678986-8
OpenAlexW3211677162
ISBN9781315678986
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited1

Social science research on environmental justice (EJ) demonstrates that environmental racism and injustice are structural problems: zoning laws, mortgage lending practices, public hearing procedures, and other institutional arrangements create inequity both in the distribution of environmental harms and in communities' ability to advocate for themselves. Research in the field of Science and Technology Studies (STS) adds to our understanding of the structural nature of environmental injustice by showing how scientific knowledge production practices, technological infrastructures, and the authority afforded to experts all help create an uneven terrain for diverse communities seeking a healthy, safe environment. At the same time, STS scholarship identifies alternatives to mainstream practices, including community-based science and scientist-activism, that stand to further environmental justice. This chapter introduces fundamental concepts in STS and shows how this theoretical lens furthers our understanding of both the structures of environmental injustice and the potential for their transformation

Art · Anthropological Studies and Insights

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