Congratulations to Dr. Amy Krings on the publication of several impactful articles relating to social and environmental justice.
Her article, Practitioners’ perspectives on preventing environmental gentrification, published in the Journal of Urban Affairs, offers critical guidance for community-based practitioners, urban planners, and policymakers on improving environmental quality without reproducing social inequities. Drawing from qualitative research in Chicago, Krings and co-author Dr. Tania Schusler explore how environmental initiatives—such as pollution cleanup and green space creation—can inadvertently contribute to environmental gentrification when implemented within systems shaped by structural racism.
“Our research demonstrates that inclusive, community-driven approaches are necessary to ensure that greening efforts benefit—not displace—longstanding residents,” says Krings.
Through interviews with community organizers, environmental justice advocates, urban planners, and housing specialists, the authors identified five key strategies for equitable urban greening. They include:
- Co-construct knowledge and share decision-making power
- Design inclusive community engagement that centers marginalized voices
- Implement multi-issue interventions
- Disrupt structural racism and systemic disparities
- Coordinate policies and programs across local, state, and federal scales
These findings offer a roadmap for inclusive and effective urban sustainability efforts.
Krings also coauthored “A Framework for Trauma-Informed Climate Research: Interrupting the Relationship Between Climate Trauma and Social Inertia”, published in Ecopsychology. Co-authored with Dr. Sandra Engstrom, the article introduces a trauma-informed framework to help academics, community partners, and citizen scientists conduct climate research ethically and safely, especially when working with vulnerable populations. The framework aims to support research teams doing climate research while fostering community resilience and social action.
Finally, in her role as a co-editor of the Journal of Community Practice, Krings coauthored two editorials — “Engage, resist, transform: the essential role of community practice” and “Holding Space: A Defense of Community Practice Research”. Both support the transformative potential of community practice research.
“We will continue to create space for the dissemination of community practice research that examines and promotes social justice through community change,” says Krings. “We believe that scientists, particularly those who study community practice theory and methods, have a right and a responsibility to disseminate work that influences social policy, organizational practices and community groups.”
