Role of Community in Environmental Health

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In the terms of community investment, Cultural Anthropologist Victor Turner used the term community that emerges during a collective ritual and is characterized by social equality, solidarity, and togetherness (Liburd 1) From this perspective, Turner argues that a connection of commonality, interest and preservation are elements needed to not only increase awareness of environmental issues in efforts to secure protection against toxic agents from entry into the community. I want to argue six points to consider in building the characteristics of a community that is deemed effective in combating against environmental injustice and community disenfranchisement for the people of color. First, a community must incorporate a membership or sense of identity and belonging. In efforts to raise awareness about problems in the community, neighbors need to establish a sense of identity through actions, beliefs and shared common interest in order to bring unison in the community. Second, a community with a common symbol system such as language is often used to conceptualize community. For instance, researchers argue that technical language remains a prerequisite for most deliberative forums, often creating an intimidating and discipline barrier for lay citizens seeking to express their disagreements in the language of everyday life. Speaking the language of science, as well as the jargon of a particular policy community, remains an essential, but often tacit, credential for participation in environmental health decision-making even in the new deliberative forms. (Corburn, 43) Third, a community must have shared values and norms that support, promote and educate the ideology of environmental health issues to educate and empowers community lea... ... middle of paper ... ... worth and education level of local residents. In many cases, ensuring adequate protection of the law, legislators and community leaders must invest in the safety and quality of life among citizens who at a disadvantages. The model of community reinforcement provides local citizens the opportunity to take an active role of protecting, learning and engaging in discussion about community health problems that endanger to the quality of life. Community reinforcement through social learning gives the establish a pathway for residents to adequately teach others including children about community health problems, legislation responsibility and community involvement that emphasize personal responsibility to protect and ensure the quality of life for each generation. Community-Based Approaches for Racial and Ethnic Populations Leandris C. Liburd PHD. (Norton et al., 2002).

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