Page 118 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

7 Engaging the Environment 95

“personal touches” that our program provides to keep their projects going, which
is included as part of the structure of the framework. I have more success when
using models in my courses when there is time to also consider theory and
encourage critical reflection. Without these things, the opportunity to learn
through the community is limited. I agree with you, Kurt, in terms of why it is
important to elaborate which theoretical frames are used to foster the kind of
longer-term learning that Roth described.
I use a powerful experience to emphasize this point: an Environmental Justice
tour of Louisville. Most teachers are unaware of the local environmental history
and current issues and how it disproportionately affects some more than others. By
actually taking them to physical locations instead of just reading about them,
teachers are confronted by the realities of peoples’ situations and the way it may
impact their lives (some of whom are my teachers’ students), as well as others
further down the Ohio River. The Louisville Environmental Justice tour was devel-
oped by my friend and colleague Russ Barnett who is also the Director of the
Kentucky Institute for the Environment and Sustainable Development. Russ took
me on the tour when I first came to Louisville to help me better understand this
urban environment. It has become a mainstay in many of the classes that I teach.
A main portion of the tour focuses on an area called Rubbertown, named for the
prevalence of rubber-making plants that were built here in the 1940s. It is well-
known as the largest source of industrial emissions releasing over three million
pounds of air toxins annually, according to air toxic monitoring completed by a
partnership between concerned citizens, the University of Louisville, the
Environmental Protection Agency, Rubbertown Industries, and so forth. The resi-
dents (zip code 40211 and 40202) are primarily African American, single, and the
median income is significantly lower than US averages – according to the 2000 US
census report. The residential communities in this area were developed in response
to the increasing need for housing associated with rubber jobs during World War
II. The west end is not seen as a desirable place to live. The monitoring program
found cancer risks from long-term exposure near Rubbertown in 2005. The findings
were 4–60 times higher than a monitoring station on the east end. As a result of
foul odors and visual pollution, the community and industry established the West
Jefferson County Community Task Force (www.wjcctf.org) to identify environ-
mental issues in the community and “to empower residents to make informed
decisions on environmental justice issues” (www.wjcctf.org/about). This engagement
has led to increased community awareness and agency, which I have seen from the
active community members as they work to improve the area. At the same time,
I cannot help but to question the “hidden agendas” represented in the websites
above. The task force make up is not reflective of the community at large. Is the
sense of community agency one where the community members gain meaningful
involvement to have a say?
As part of the E-Justice tour, other areas visited are Smoketown, where a large
population of African Americans settled in the 1860s and 1870s because they
believed they would be freed. There is the Bourbon Stockyard and Butchtown,
where unused animal parts from meat processing eventually make their way into