{"id":220779,"date":"2024-11-14T07:30:08","date_gmt":"2024-11-14T12:30:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=220779"},"modified":"2025-03-18T16:17:22","modified_gmt":"2025-03-18T20:17:22","slug":"seeking-climate-justice-for-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2024\/11\/seeking-climate-justice-for-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Seeking Climate JUSTICE for All"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Despite devoting her career to climate science research, Anji Seth doesn\u2019t think science alone can solve climate change.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">At least, not in the way people typically expect. No feat of engineering, she says, will magically fix the environmental catastrophe that humans have created.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cAs a physical scientist working on this problem for a long time, I realized that physical science is not solving it,\u201d Seth says. \u201cWe [scientists] can solve the technical part of the problem, but we can&#8217;t solve the human part.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Seth has always been intrigued by collaborative research across disciplines. With her Ph.D. in atmospheric sciences, she specifically chose to teach in the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/geography-sustainability-community-urban.uconn.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">department of geography, sustainability, community, and urban studies<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> (where she is now the interim department head) because of how it positioned her to pursue interdisciplinary climate change research.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cMany social scientists and humanities researchers have been working on these issues for decades,\u201d Seth says. It has become increasingly apparent to her that the solutions to climate change \u2013 and the devastating ripple effects across vulnerable communities \u2013 could be unlocked through strategic collaboration among diverse researchers.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">So Seth and colleagues formed JUSTICE, or the Collaboratory for JUST Innovation and Climate Equity. What started out as an informal faculty reading group, reading and discussing thought-provoking books on climate change and humanity, soon blossomed into a fully fledged collaboration \u2013 researchers working together to tackle bigger projects than they could individually.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">The group includes physical scientists, like Seth, as well as faculty in the social sciences and humanities. In addition to Seth, the Collaboratory includes:<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Carol Atkinson-Palombo, <\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Professor, Department of Geography, Sustainability, Community, and Urban Studies<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Oksan Bayulgen<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, Professor &amp; Department Head, Political Science<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Thomas Bontly<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, Associate Professor, Philosophy; Director, Environmental Studies<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"4\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Syma Ebbin<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, Professor-in-Residence, Connecticut Sea Grant, Agricultural and Resource Economics and Maritime Studies Program<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"5\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Phoebe Godfrey<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, Professor-in-Residence, Sociology<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"6\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Mark Healy<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, Asssociate Professor and Department Head, History<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"7\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Kathleen Segerson<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, BOT Distinguished Professor, Economics<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"8\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Eleanor Ouimet<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, Assistant Professor, Anthropology<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">This kind of disciplinary mixing is rare in academic spaces. And that\u2019s precisely the problem, these scholars argue.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cTraditional training is so siloed that we can end up with climate scientists and sociologists who don\u2019t know how to get into a room and talk to one another about these issues,\u201d says Atkinson-Palombo.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Moving Toward a JUST Future<\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">JUSTICE was awarded nearly $150,000 in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/ovpr.uconn.edu\/services\/research-development\/internal-funding-opportunities\/caric\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">CARIC (Convergence Awards for Research in Interdisciplinary Centers)<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> funding from UConn\u2019s Office of the Vice President for Research earlier this year. The group will use the CARIC funding to host a three-day writing retreat, a symposium, and a colloquium series, each designed to strengthen UConn\u2019s intellectual community on JUSTICE issues.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">After laying this groundwork, the team hopes JUSTICE will be well positioned to apply for major awards from national and state funding organizations, leveraging an expertise as deep as it is broad.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">This is especially crucial given the current landscape for research funding, notes JUSTICE member Phoebe Godfrey.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cWhen it comes to research funding from 1990 to 2018, only 0.12% was spent on the social science of climate mitigation,\u201d Godfrey says, citing <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S2214629619309119\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">a 2020 review<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> in Energy Research and Social Science. \u201cThis data point is really shocking.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Earlier this year, the group behind JUSTICE hosted the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2024\/05\/uconn-hosts-just-transitions-symposium\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Just Transitions Symposium<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">, where experts in various fields spoke about innovative and justice-oriented climate change solutions from all disciplines. Participants included journalists, historians, philosophers, filmmakers, engineers, geographers, economists, sociologists, and political scientists.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">JUSTICE members have also organized classes, like Atkinson-Palombo and Norman Garrick\u2019s \u201cSustainable Zurich\u201d class (culminating in a film festival showcasing student work), and Godfrey and Atkinson-Palombo&#8217;s co-taught ecofeminism independent study course.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cThe fall 2024 course is a pilot, and we plan to expand it in upcoming semesters, working with Kathy Fischer, associate director of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/womenscenter.uconn.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Women\u2019s Center<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">,\u201d says Atkinson-Palombo.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-220780 alignright img-responsive lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Screenshot-2024-11-01-163627-300x206.png\" alt=\"Venn diagram showing six intersecting UConn institutions: CLEAN Earth, CLEAR, InCHIP, CIRCA, and ASG\" width=\"300\" height=\"206\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Screenshot-2024-11-01-163627-300x206.png 300w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Screenshot-2024-11-01-163627-768x526.png 768w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Screenshot-2024-11-01-163627-613x420.png 613w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Screenshot-2024-11-01-163627.png 772w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/206;\" \/>The JUSTICE Collaboratory sits at the intersection of many of UConn\u2019s research strengths \u2013 health equity, clean technologies, climate science, community resilience, and extension education \u2013 and leverages existing centers &amp; i<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">nstitutes including the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/cleanearth.engr.uconn.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">CLEAN EARTH Laboratory<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">, the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/asg.uconn.edu\/about-the-atmospheric-sciences-group\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Atmospheric Sciences Group<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> (which Seth leads); the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/circa.uconn.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Connecticut Institute for Resilience &amp; Climate Adaptation (CIRCA);<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/chip.uconn.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP)<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">; and the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/clear.uconn.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR)<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cWe aren\u2019t starting from scratch and working together \u2013 we\u2019ve worked together in a lot of different capacities,\u201d Atkinson-Palombo points out.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>\u2018What We Need is Integrated Ideas\u2019<\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cThe social science and humanities work [on climate change] has been going on for decades already,\u201d says Seth. \u201cWhen I talk to my colleagues in social science and humanities about these issues, they\u2019re saying, hey, we\u2019ve been working on this for 30 years already.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cThe problem is not that there needs to be new work done \u2013 the problem is that STEM scientists need to be educated about all the work that has been done, and what we know is needed to make the solutions possible,\u201d she continues. \u201cWe don\u2019t even need that many new ideas. What we need is integration of those ideas.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Through shared goals and mutual support, interdisciplinary research collaborations like JUSTICE strengthen the sense of community and collective responsibility needed to drive meaningful action against climate change. It\u2019s this principle that will help create equitable, just futures for all communities in the coming years.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cWithin our society at every level, community-building is one of the most important parts of the problem,\u201d Seth says. \u201cBecause the systems that we\u2019re in right now, the way they have developed is they kind of atomize everything into individuals and what an individual can do. But really, it&#8217;s collective actions that are going to be needed.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A team of UConn researchers is changing climate conversations for good<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":220781,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2297,2224,2226,2304,2460,2300,2624,2648,2076,2387,2235,2227],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2413],"class_list":["post-220779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-agricultural-resource-economics","category-cahnr","category-clas","category-extension","category-faculty","category-natural-resources-environment","category-blue","category-blue-research","category-research","category-sustainability","category-today-homepage","category-uconn-edu-homepage"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-14 07:12:08","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/175"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220779"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220779\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":221121,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220779\/revisions\/221121"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/220781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220779"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=220779"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=220779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}