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Right Answers, Wrong Questions: Environmental Justice as Urban Research

Author

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  • Lisa Schweitzer

    (Urban Affairs and Planning, 205 Architecture Annex, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24060, USA, lschwei@vt.edu)

  • Max Stephenson JR

    (Urban Affairs and Planning and the Centre for Public Administration and Policy, Institute for Governance and Accountabilities, School of Public and International Affairs, 103 Architecture Annex, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, USA, mstephen@vt.edu)

Abstract

Environmental justice, a term that incorporates 'environmental racism' and 'environmental classism,' captures the idea that different racial and socioeconomic groups experience differential access to environmental quality. This article explores what previous studies have established about environmental justice as an urban phenomenon and critiques the focus and methodologies of those efforts within the larger context of urban inquiry. After assaying the concepts that have guided most of the research, the paper considers the arguments that analysts have offered for the causes of environmental injustice. The review of the literature reveals significant problems of focus, measurement, specification and research design. Nonetheless, environmental justice research raises critical concerns about how citizens should be treated and what constitutes a just distribution of collective urban goods in a democratic society. It is the authors' view that due consideration of these matters can enlighten urban and environmental inquiry and policy.

Suggested Citation

  • Lisa Schweitzer & Max Stephenson JR, 2007. "Right Answers, Wrong Questions: Environmental Justice as Urban Research," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 44(2), pages 319-337, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:44:y:2007:i:2:p:319-337
    DOI: 10.1080/00420980601074961
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Douglas S. Noonan, 2008. "Evidence of Environmental Justice: A Critical Perspective on the Practice of EJ Research and Lessons for Policy Design," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 89(5), pages 1153-1174, December.
    2. Karen Bickerstaff & Harriet Bulkeley & Joe Painter, 2009. "Justice, Nature and the City," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 591-600, September.

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