Environmental Reproductive Justice and Social Work Praxis

ABSTRACT

This paper highlights the value of an Environmental Reproductive Justice framework in social work and argues that environmental justice and reproductive justice should not be approached as two distinct issues. Because social work is a human right and social justice focused profession, it is uniquely poised to simultaneously address environmental justice issues impacting reproductive health and wellbeing. An Environmental Reproductive Justice framework centers Intersectionality to address sociopolitical issues at the intersection of environmental and reproductive concerns. We offer examples of organizations utilizing Environmental Reproductive Justice approaches, whether implicitly or explicitly. We conclude with implications for social work education and practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Environmental Reproductive Justice
• social work
• human rights
• health & wellbeing

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Christine Marie Velez

Christine Marie Velez (MSW, PhD) is an Assistant Professor in the Social Work Department at the University of Vermont. She earned her MSW from SUNY Buffalo and her PhD in Social Work and Social Research at Portland State University in Portland, OR. Dr. Velez has experience with a variety of social science research methodologies, including critical, anti-oppressive, and feminist approaches. She also has experience in substance use prevention and intervention research. Some of her current research is situated in sexualities and sexual health studies, with a focus on reproductive justice. Dr. Velez is also co-PI of a federal HRSA BHWET training grant for social work and counseling graduate students. Dr. Velez brings a wide range of teaching experiences in research, health care, HBSE, and practice courses. She is especially interested in the infusion of critical race studies and intersectionality content into social work education curricula as well as evaluating and strengthening the application of theory and research to social work practice.

Yolanda Machado-Escudero

Yolanda Machado-Escudero (MSW, PhD) is an Assistant Professor in the Social Work department at the University of North Florida. Her research interests include environmental injustice, migration and climate change, disability, socioeconomic development, Latin American social work education, social welfare policy, and healthcare disparities among families of color, among others. Dr. Machado-Escudero’s pedagogy is informed by critical race and feminist ecology frameworks, focusing on issues affecting Latino families living in vulnerable contexts. She currently serves as a board member in various grassroots coalitions aiming to improve the quality of life of Latinos and other communities of color in the United States. Currently, she is working on developing various interdisciplinary projects, including addressing the aftermath of natural disasters for Puerto Rican migrant families, including forced migration and collective trauma. Dr. Machado-Escudero is currently collaborating with efforts to build coalitions to provide mainstream services to migrant families affected by separations due to deportation proceedings.

Christa Gilliam

Christa Gilliam (PhD, MSW) is an Associate Professor and Chairperson in the Department of Social Work at Coppin State University in Baltimore, MD. A California native, she moved to Baltimore, MD to pursue her PhD after more than 10 years of practicing in the public sector serving children and families. She earned her PhD in social work from Morgan State University and her MSW from the University of California, Berkeley. Her interests are rooted in her experience as a practitioner turned academic. Dr. Gilliam has worked in higher education since 2005, advancing the mission of social work through teaching, service to the profession and community, and research on topics addressing racial and gender oppression. Her current scholarship focuses on social work workforce development, leadership, professional mentoring, social work policy and practice in urban communities, and social, economic, political, and environmental justice.

Lacey Sloan

Lacey Sloan (MSSW, PhD) is an Associate Professor in Social Work at Auburn University at Montgomery. She is an educator and researcher with expertise in social work education program development and implementation, accreditation, and assessment. Dr. Sloan’s areas of social work practice and research are critical multiculturalism, social work education in Islamic countries, sexual rights and environmental justice. Her social work practice experience and early scholarship was in the field of sexual violence, particularly against historically marginalized populations (people with disabilities, elders, LGBT+ communities, sex workers). For 5 years Dr. Sloan worked as the scientific lead on the Violence Against Women Act Measuring Effectiveness project. Over the past nine years (2009-2018), Dr. Sloan facilitated the development, implementation and/or initial accreditation for 6 social work education programs in the USA, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Somalia–3 MSSW programs and 3 BSSW programs. When developing new social work education programs, she works to ensure that local contexts and Indigenous knowledge are central to the program. Dr. Sloan’s recent work with UNICEF in Somalia brought her experience in gender based violence, social work education in Islamic countries, and environmental justice together with peace and justice studies.