An Ecologic Framework to Study and Address Environmental Justice and Community Health Issues

Abstract

This article builds on environmental justice (EJ) research that examines the differential exposure of disadvantaged populations to environmental hazards and health resources. This article presents a multidisciplinary ecologic framework that postulates macro and meso-level determinants of health are operationalized through segregation and community zoning, planning, and development to create living conditions in urban landscapes. This article promotes the need for a more holistic approach to community health by defining communities as “human ecological systems” with health occurring across a continuum and at multiple scales. By modifying ecologic features of the environment, we can increase the capacity of disadvantaged communities to overcome their exposure to environmental hazards and enhance their access to health resources to achieve environmental justice and improve community health.