Repair Lab: Difference between revisions
Repair Lab text |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
== Practitioner-in-Residence (PIR) Program == | == Practitioner-in-Residence (PIR) Program == | ||
The Repair Lab PIR program's primary objective is to position grassroots environmental justice activists at the center of policy debates | The Repair Lab PIR program's primary objective is to position grassroots environmental justice activists at the center of the environmental policy debates affecting their communities.<ref>cite</ref> The Repair Lab PIR program provides financial, logistical, research, and media resources to individuals and teams for one-year environmental justice residencies. PIRs direct and work as part of the Repair Lab team to develop a policy intervention, policy implementation plan, and related multimedia products such as a podcast and opinion articles. The team expands as required to include additional community members and/or other subject matter experts, who are all financially compensated for their time and contributions. PIRs are identified through an open application process requiring a short proposal describing the issue that will be the focus of the residency. | ||
The Repair Lab PIR program | The Repair Lab PIR program was designed to support community preferences for action through policy as opposed to the generation of more research. The Repair Lab approach builds on established frameworks for community engagement, in particular, the International Association for Public Participation,<ref>cite</ref> but with a focus on collaborating with activists from historically marginalized groups specifically. The Repair Lab PIR program was developed as a response to current trends in environmental justice research that privilege technical and scientific expertise, have top-down organizational structures, and lack genuine engagement with the most-affected people.<ref>cite</ref> <ref>cite</ref> We define community engagement broadly as activities that build relationships, trust, and capacity to support equitable problem solving and collective action. | ||
In addition to producing new community-centered environmental policies, the Repair Lab PIR program cultivates community thought leaders and contributes to the political learning, socialization, and activation of PIRs. | In addition to producing new community-centered environmental policies, the Repair Lab PIR program cultivates community thought leaders and contributes to the political learning, socialization, and activation of PIRs. PIRs build networks with other activists and organizers and become recognized as leaders by local politicians and other decision-makers. These relationships and the expertise developed and held by PIRs remain in the community after the residency has ended, facilitating continuity and deepening affected constituents’ expressions of their preferences and priorities, as is essential for both compelling and evaluating government responsiveness. | ||
== Coal Dust Kills == | == Coal Dust Kills == | ||
Revision as of 13:49, 30 April 2025
The Repair Lab is a group of activists, social and physical scientists, and artists focused on environmental justice based at the University of Virginia.
Practitioner-in-Residence (PIR) Program
The Repair Lab PIR program's primary objective is to position grassroots environmental justice activists at the center of the environmental policy debates affecting their communities.[1] The Repair Lab PIR program provides financial, logistical, research, and media resources to individuals and teams for one-year environmental justice residencies. PIRs direct and work as part of the Repair Lab team to develop a policy intervention, policy implementation plan, and related multimedia products such as a podcast and opinion articles. The team expands as required to include additional community members and/or other subject matter experts, who are all financially compensated for their time and contributions. PIRs are identified through an open application process requiring a short proposal describing the issue that will be the focus of the residency.
The Repair Lab PIR program was designed to support community preferences for action through policy as opposed to the generation of more research. The Repair Lab approach builds on established frameworks for community engagement, in particular, the International Association for Public Participation,[2] but with a focus on collaborating with activists from historically marginalized groups specifically. The Repair Lab PIR program was developed as a response to current trends in environmental justice research that privilege technical and scientific expertise, have top-down organizational structures, and lack genuine engagement with the most-affected people.[3] [4] We define community engagement broadly as activities that build relationships, trust, and capacity to support equitable problem solving and collective action.
In addition to producing new community-centered environmental policies, the Repair Lab PIR program cultivates community thought leaders and contributes to the political learning, socialization, and activation of PIRs. PIRs build networks with other activists and organizers and become recognized as leaders by local politicians and other decision-makers. These relationships and the expertise developed and held by PIRs remain in the community after the residency has ended, facilitating continuity and deepening affected constituents’ expressions of their preferences and priorities, as is essential for both compelling and evaluating government responsiveness.