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Gemstone Team E-JUSTICE
Research Team
Welcome to Gemstone
Team E-JUSTICE
University of Maryland, College Park: Class of 2020
Our four-year research goal is to study emergency preparedness to flooding events in Maryland counties with communities that face disproportionate risk to floods through a combination of GIS technology, policy analysis, and community outreach.
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Learn more about the Gemstone Honors Program at the University of Maryland.
What Is Environmental Justice?
Environmental justice is the fair and equal treatment and involvement of all people with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws and policies. As it stands, different groups of people across the nation, and the world, are disproportionately affected by environmental policies and problems. Examples include the Flint water crisis and Standing Rock, where the safety and health of people of color has been compromised by greater policies and systems without the consent of the people who would be affected.
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Our Research
Our goal is to identify areas of Maryland and DC with high socio-economic vulnerability, flood risk, and environmental risk and to assess whether emergency preparedness policies in these areas are effective in ensuring the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of vulnerable populations.
Researching Vulnerable Areas
We will examine data on elevation levels, flooding, and other factors to determine which areas in Maryland and the DMV are at risk and need to be studied further. We will also conduct surveys of county emergency planners and of residents in affected areas.
Analyzing Existing Policies
We will use laws such as the EPCRA statute and research-based criteria to determine whether policies abide by government set standards. We will also compare plans between counties according to our criteria.
GIS Technology
We will use Geographical Information Systems data and mapping to determine areas that fit pre-determined criteria including socioeconomic factors and flood risk.
Where Are We Right Now?
Where are we in our research process?
May 17, 2019
We completed our drafts of the Lit Review and Methodology sections of our Senior Thesis and commenced final editing.
April 17, 2019
We presented our work at Undergraduate Research Day with a comprehensive poster of our research question, methodology, and results thus far.
April 10, 2019
We began data collection in our survey methodology by conducting an interview with the Emergency Manager and author of Emergency Plans in Carroll County.
Spring 2019
In our Spring 2019 semester we made great strides in our data collection, finalizing our policy analysis checklist and beginning qualitative analysis with R-Studio. We also began our surveys of Emergency Plan authors and updated our GIS maps to include buffer zones around sites of major pollution. We also presented our work at Undergraduate Research day, created a team poster, and finished drafting the Lit Review and Methodology sections of our Senior Thesis.
November 15, 2018
We presented our research progress to a panel of experts and our fellow Gemstone students at the Gemstone Do Good Showcase. We detailed our methodology, future plans, and the importance of our research.
Fall 2018
In the Fall 2018 semester, we produced GIS maps of Maryland that highlight areas of interest based on flood risk, proximity to toxic waste facilities, and demographic information.
We narrowed the scope of our policy research to county emergency plans and created a list of criteria to begin comparative analysis.
We formed a comprehensive list of interview questions to ask local policy makers in the Spring 2019 semester.
Spring 2018 - Summer 2018
We have been working towards determining the scope of our research through GIS mapping and informal research on individual Maryland counties' emergency preparedness plans.
February 2018
In Spring of 2018, proposed our research and defended it to a panel of experts.
August, 2017
In the Fall 2017 semester, we compiled our literature review, revised the direction of our research, and prepared for our sophomore research proposal in Spring 2018.
April 13, 2017
Our team was formed in freshman year in the Gemstone Honors Program at University of Maryland at College Park. Our project was proposed by teammates Haley Mullen and Candela Cerpa. In May 2017, we were joined by our mentor, Professor Joanna B. Goger.
Contact Us
Thank you for your interest in our research. To contact us, please fill out the form below, or e-mail us directly at teamejustice@gmail.com
Be sure to follow us on our social media for more updates on our progress!