Conducting research — before and after disasters occur — for more informed and equitable policy and design.
– Recent News + Publications
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![Photograph of Governor Newsom signing disaster bills]()
[POLICY WIN] Governor Newsom signs SB1093 into law! This bill was part of an effort from our community partners at NPHS and Senator Allen's office. We were proud to support this team and the bill with our Los Angeles Fires research!
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[AWARD] The Just Environments Lab was given a 2026 Merit Award for Research and Communication by the American Society of Landscape Architects - Northern California Chapter for our historical ecology work in the Pájaro Valley
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![Photograph of a Tahitian Terraces road signs melted by the Palisades Fire]()
[NEWS] The National Low Income Housing Coalition awards JE-L and our partners, Neighborhood Partnership Housing Service, a Collaborative Disaster Recovery Research Seed Grant to assist manufactured housing communities after the Palisades Fire
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![Screenshot of publication on the JAE website]()
[PUBLICATION] The article "Designing Through Social Critique" is now available and covers our design studio frameworks
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![Screenshot of report's cover.]()
[PUBLICATION] Our report "Redesigning to Adapt to Floods in Unincorporated Areas" from our Lau project is now available
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![Photograph of a person looking at an exhibit]()
[EXHIBIT] Our Flood Event Timeline and archival flood risk research is on display at the Lau Climate Futures Exhibit during April 2025
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![Diagram showing the spreads from our Equitable Resilience report]()
[PUBLICATION] Our community report "Equitable Recovery for the Pájaro Valley After the 2023 Winter Storms" is now available!
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![Map showing areas of possible flooding in the Pájaro Valley]()
[PUBLICATION] Our Quick Response Report covering disaster recovery in unincorporated areas is now published in the Natural Hazards Center's library
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![Logo with text saying "Lau Grant for Just Climate Futures"]()
[NEWS] JE-L awarded a Lau Just Climate Futures Grant from the Institute of Urban and Regional Development to assemble an historical ecology of the Pájaro River for the U.S. Army Corps
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[AWARD] Our JAPA article on procedural vulnerability wins the award for 2023 Best Article by Emerging Scholars
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![Image of flooding in California, Winter 2023.]()
[NEWS] JE-L receives funding from CalWater + USGS to develop flood mitigation tools for unincorporated communities in California
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![Screenshot of journal cover]()
[PUBLICATION] Unincorporated and Underserved: Critical Stormwater Infrastructure Challenges in South Texas Colonias
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![Photograph of Pajaro River]()
[NEWS] JE-L receives a Quick Response Award from the Natural Hazards Center to conduct community workshops in the Pájaro Valley
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![Photo from Washington Post showing failed Pajaro River levee]()
[NEWS] "Flooded and feeling forgotten" - JE-L assists reporters examining the Pájaro Valley floods
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![Cover of our lab's report on colonia flooding]()
[PUBLICATION] Colonia Flooding: An Institutional Analysis for the Lower Río Grande Valley
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![Screenshot of the MIT LCAU article on MIT's website.]()
[PUBLICATION] From Community Resilience to Climate Justice
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![First page of the publication Procedural Vulnerability and Its Effects on Equitable Post-Disaster Recovery in Low-Income Communities]()
[PUBLICATION] Procedural Vulnerability and Its Effects on Equitable Post-Disaster Recovery in Low-Income Communities
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![Book cover for "Informality and the City"]()
[PUBLICATION] Stigmas of Informality: Disaster Recovery and Reconstruction in the South Texas Colonias
– Research Focus
We focus, first, on hazard mitigation, seeking to provide the best evidence-based protections for low-resource communities facing high risks of natural hazards. In moments of crisis, we also work with low-resource communities in disaster response, recovery, and reconstruction.
– Community Pages
Much of our research is conducted in tandem with communities and their leaders. In this vein, we coproduce research questions, methods, analyses, and reporting with communities. Many request a central location for data, findings, and publications, which we provide freely!