@article{vila_cutts_knollenberg_rivers_2023, title={Environmental justice in disaster recovery: Recognition of the Latinx community by nonprofit leaders}, volume={40}, ISSN={["2212-0963"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.crm.2023.100502}, journal={CLIMATE RISK MANAGEMENT}, author={Vila, Olivia and Cutts, Bethany and Knollenberg, Whitney and Rivers, Louie}, year={2023} }
 @article{thompson_bunds_larson_cutts_hipp_2023, title={Paying for nature‐based solutions: A review of funding and financing mechanisms for ecosystem services and their impacts on social equity}, url={https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.2510}, DOI={10.1002/sd.2510}, abstractNote={Funding and financing challenges remain a persistent barrier to implementing nature-based solutions that enhance ecosystem services, facilitate adaptation to climate change, and combat environmental stressors in cities. In the absence of adequate public financial resources, private funds are often expected to fill the gap. But market-driven, nature-based solutions can contribute to an inequitable distribution of urban ecosystem services by focusing on net benefits provided by nature. To help foster sustainable development and ensure that nature-based solutions reach diverse and historically marginalized populations and communities, this scoping review explores the ecosystem services provided by nature-based solutions and the payment mechanisms that produce and maintain them, focusing on literature on the United States. Findings suggest that the net benefits provided by nature-based solutions and the available payment mechanisms vary based on the solution utilized (e.g., urban trees, parks, community gardens). Further, the distribution of benefits from nature-based solutions is influenced by local historical, cultural, political, economic, and environmental contexts, the voices included in decision-making, and the payment mechanisms used. Inspired by social equity principles, we present a framework for ecosystem service provision that is sensitive to market-driven funding, financing, and partnerships. Practitioners can use this framework to assess whether payment schemes work in tandem with place (the local context) and process (governance and planning approaches) to ameliorate or exacerbate disparities in nature-based solutions and the benefits they provide to people.}, journal={Sustainable Development}, author={Thompson, Austin and Bunds, Kyle and Larson, Lincoln and Cutts, Bethany and Hipp, J. Aaron}, year={2023}, month={Mar} }
 @article{mullenbach_breyer_cutts_rivers_larson_2022, title={An antiracist, anticolonial agenda for urban greening and conservation}, volume={15}, ISSN={1755-263X 1755-263X}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/conl.12889}, DOI={10.1111/conl.12889}, abstractNote={Productive discourse regarding the role of racism and colonialism in conservation is growing but still limited. Inadequate recognition of these powerful forces has significantly impeded socially just conservation efforts. This paper integrates multiple disciplinary perspectives to discuss historical conservation practices in the United States and abroad to reveal challenges with moving beyond traditional approaches to conservation that perpetuate systemic racism and colonialism. Using urban greening (e.g., tree planting) in the United States as an example, we show how these challenges manifest as White ideals of nature, power disparities, and displacement and exclusion. We then put forth an agenda for antiracist, anticolonial urban conservation and urban greening. This agenda uses the tripartite environmental justice framework (i.e., distributional, recognition, and procedural justice) as a starting point, integrating and adapting more critical views of contemporary environmental justice to highlight specific policies and practices that can be applied to many conservation problems.}, number={4}, journal={Conservation Letters}, publisher={Wiley}, author={Mullenbach, Lauren E. and Breyer, Betsy and Cutts, Bethany B. and Rivers, Louie, III and Larson, Lincoln R.}, year={2022}, month={Jun} }
 @article{cutts_greenlee_chantrill_2022, title={Coupling ecosystem-centered governance modes with environmental justice}, volume={4}, ISSN={["2624-9634"]}, DOI={10.3389/frsc.2022.826326}, abstractNote={In North America, Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOCs) were established to remediate aquatic pollution in 1987 as part of a binational agreement between the United State of America and Canada. Although the action preceded formal environmental injustice acknowledgment, the AOC program's effort to remediate legacy pollutants includes language with the potential to accomplish core goals of EJ: democratizing decision-making and reducing disproportionate environmental burden. Yet, in AOCs, discussions of public engagement regarding AOC work tend to define participation institutionally (i.e., the state, market, and civil society) rather than by racial or socioeconomic inclusivity. Understanding how AOC governance processes consider representation of, and benefit to communities negotiating remediation decisions from positions of systemic disadvantage requires addressing the relationship between ecosystem-centered governance modes and environmental justice. In this study, interviews with governance actors reveal that concern for EJ issues wield different forms of authority as ecosystem-centered governance and environmental justice couple, decouple, and uncouple. Changes in coupling correspond with shifts in ecosystem-centric governance mode, but coupling does not rely on any one particular governance arrangement. Instead, coupling relies on leadership practices and conceptions of fairness that are EJ-responsive and present EJ as indistinct from ecosystem goals and targets. Our findings reinforce the assertion that ecosystem-centered governance can be reimagined to better facilitate EJ even without changes in financial and regulatory constraints. We conclude by proposing empirical measures that advance EGM-EJ qualitative scholarship and practical advice about how to cultivate EJ-responsive leadership in ecosystem-centered governance arrangements.}, journal={FRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE CITIES}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Greenlee, Andrew J. and Chantrill, Carolina V.}, year={2022}, month={Oct} }
 @article{vila_smith_cutts_gyawali_bhattarai_2022, title={Equity in FEMA hazard mitigation assistance programs: The role of state hazard mitigation officers}, volume={136}, ISSN={["1873-6416"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.envsci.2022.07.027}, abstractNote={FEMA provides hundreds of millions of dollars for hazard mitigation projects annually through their Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant programs. HMA funding is most accessible to resource-rich communities leaving historically underserved communities that are often more vulnerable to disasters less able to obtain federal mitigation funding. This research highlights the results of a national survey conducted with 43 State Hazard Mitigation Officers (SHMOs), assigned state-level leaders who can have great influence on mitigation equity within their state. The survey explored the role of states and territories in facilitating mitigation equity in FEMA HMA programs using a three-pillar environmental justice framework (recognition, procedural justice, and distributional justice). The results indicate state-level shortcomings, including limited understanding of underserved communities, poor procedures for identifying and engaging with underserved communities, and limited local engagement in state- or territory-sponsored conferences, trainings, meetings, and policy discussions. The results yield insight into some of the underlying processes through which inequities in federal support for mitigation emerge and provide guidance to address shortcomings. These findings have important implications for federal- and state-level policy aiming to promote equity in hazard mitigation. Specifically, they point to the need for assessments of the needs, values, and priorities of low-capacity communities, identification and outreach strategies tailored to those communities, and increased financial and technical assistance for equity-focused actions. This study underscores the value of environmental justice research in decision-making associated with multi- billion- dollar federal grant programs. • SHMO’s recognition of low-capacity communities is relatively limited. • Engagement processes are not tailored to the qualities of those communities. • Assistance for recognition-based activities is necessary for equitable outcomes.}, journal={ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & POLICY}, author={Vila, Olivia and Smith, Gavin and Cutts, Bethany and Gyawali, Samata and Bhattarai, Samiksha}, year={2022}, month={Oct}, pages={632–641} }
 @article{bergeson_martin_doll_cutts_2022, title={Soil infiltration rates are underestimated by models in an urban watershed in central North Carolina, USA}, volume={313}, ISSN={["1095-8630"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115004}, DOI={10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115004}, abstractNote={Stormwater management problems are expanding as urbanization continues and precipitation patterns are increasingly extreme. Urban soils are often more disturbed and compacted than non-urban soils, therefore, rainfall run-off estimates based on models designed for non-urban soils may not be accurate due to altered soil infiltration rates. Our objective was to quantify soil infiltration rates across an urban watershed and compare them to estimates from rainfall-runoff models commonly used in stormwater management (Horton and Green-Ampt) as well as an alternate, random-forest model created using available geospatial data. We measured infiltration rates and collected data on soil properties (texture, bulk density) and context (land use, ground cover, time since development) at 89 points across the 102 ha Walnut Creek watershed in Raleigh, North Carolina (USA). Forest land covers and forest ground covers (leaf litter) had the highest infiltration capacities; however, all of our measurements indicate that urban soils in the Walnut Creek watershed are able to absorb most precipitation events and are likely capable of infiltrating additional urban stormwater runoff. Comparisons between observations and the rainfall-runoff model estimates reveal that both underestimated urban soil infiltration rates. Despite higher than expected urban soil infiltration capacity, stormwater management remains a challenge in this urban watershed. Therefore, to reduce stormwater runoff from impervious surfaces through soil infiltration, impervious surfaces should be disconnected, especially adjacent to new development, and urban forests should be conserved. Further, because our random forest model more accurately captured watershed infiltration rates than the rainfall-runoff models, we propose this type of machine learning approach as an alternative method for informing stormwater management and prioritizing areas for impervious disconnection.}, journal={JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Bergeson, Chase B. and Martin, Katherine L. and Doll, Barbara and Cutts, Bethany B.}, year={2022}, month={Jul} }
 @article{gibson_busch_stevenson_cutts_demattia_aguilar_ardoin_carrier_clark_cooper_et al._2022, title={What is community-level environmental literacy, and how can we measure it? A report of a convening to conceptualize and operationalize CLEL}, volume={5}, ISSN={["1469-5871"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2022.2067325}, DOI={10.1080/13504622.2022.2067325}, journal={ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION RESEARCH}, publisher={Informa UK Limited}, author={Gibson, Lauren M. and Busch, K. C. and Stevenson, Kathryn T. and Cutts, Bethany B. and DeMattia, Elizabeth A. and Aguilar, Olivia M. and Ardoin, Nicole M. and Carrier, Sarah J. and Clark, Charlotte R. and Cooper, Caren B. and et al.}, year={2022}, month={Apr} }
 @article{london_cutts_schwarz_schmidt_cadenasso_2021, title={Unearthing the entangled roots of urban agriculture}, volume={38}, url={https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-020-10158-x}, DOI={10.1007/s10460-020-10158-x}, abstractNote={Abstract This study examines urban agriculture (UA) in Sacramento, California (USA), the nation's self-branded “Farm-to-Fork Capital,” in order to highlight UA’s distinct yet entangled roots. The study is based on 24 interviews with a diverse array of UA leaders, conducted as part of a five-year transdisciplinary study of UA in Sacramento. In it, we unearth three primary “taproots” of UA projects, each with its own historical legacies, normative visions, and racial dynamics. In particular, we examine UA projects with “justice taproots,” “health taproots,” and “market taproots.” We use this analysis to understand how different kinds of UA projects are embedded in racial capitalism in ways that transform relationships between people, the city, and food systems. Unearthing these entangled roots helps illuminate UA’s underlying politics, showing how these roots grow in both competitive and symbiotic ways within the soil matrix of racial capitalism. We argue that these roots interact differently with racial capitalism, creating disparities in their growth trajectories. In particular, UA projects associated with the justice taproot are historically underrepresented and undervalued. However, we argue that there are some prospects for building alliances between the UA movement’s three roots, and that these are both promising and problematic.}, number={1}, journal={Agriculture and Human Values}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={London, Jonathan K. and Cutts, Bethany B. and Schwarz, Kirsten and Schmidt, Li and Cadenasso, Mary L.}, year={2021}, month={Feb}, pages={205–220} }
 @article{emanuel_rivers_cutts_blank_2020, title={Data Analytics for Environmental Justice and Indigenous Rights: Early Warning Systems or Blind Spots?}, url={https://doi.org/10.1002/essoar.10501690.1}, DOI={10.1002/essoar.10501690.1}, abstractNote={In the United States, federal policies exist to ensure environmental justice and to protect Indigenous rights. However, the effectiveness of these policies can be influenced by analytical tools cho...}, author={Emanuel, Ryan and Rivers, Louie and Cutts, Bethany and Blank, Gary}, year={2020}, month={Jan} }
 @article{jurjonas_seekamp_rivers_cutts_2020, title={Uncovering climate (in) justice with an adaptive capacity assessment: A multiple case study in rural coastal North Carolina}, volume={94}, url={https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104547}, DOI={10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104547}, abstractNote={• Underserved rural coastal communities of color face a unique adaptation context. • Engagement with underserved communities reduces perceived adaptive capacity. • Perceived climate injustices pose barriers to coastal hazard adaptation, revealing instances of adaptation oppression. • Improved outreach strategies are needed to overcome color blindness within climate science communication. Climate change resilience is an area of praxis where efforts to enhance community adaptive capacity are informed by theory. However, there is growing evidence that ethnocentrism and privilege are shaping coastal management policies while many communities with climate justice issues struggle to build resilience. Particularly, rural coastal communities, contrasting urban areas, have limited access to centralized planning efforts, unique local contexts for outreach, compounding social vulnerabilities (job loss, out-migration, limited social services), and receive less attention from resilience researchers. Following calls to integrate climate justice into resilience praxis, we assess perceptions of adaptive capacity within predominately African American communities in a rural low-lying coastal region in eastern North Carolina. We add a climate justice lens to evaluate the previously-validated Rural Coastal Community Resilience (RCCR) framework. The RCCR is intended to improve planning efforts by providing climate change information, initiating conversations, and contributing to resilience theory. In contrast to its previous applications, engagement led to declines in perceived adaptive capacity. This result highlights that the information sharing goals of the engagement efforts were poorly aligned with community concerns and threat perceptions. Additionally, perceived climate injustices emerged revealing instances of adaptation oppression. This study recommends strategies to rethink traditional extension efforts to improve inclusiveness by deeply interrogating the inherent whiteness of standard modes of communicating climate science.}, journal={Land Use Policy}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Jurjonas, M. and Seekamp, E. and Rivers, L., III and Cutts, B.}, year={2020}, month={May}, pages={104547} }
 @article{munden-dixon_tate_cutts_roche_2019, title={An uncertain future: climate resilience of first-generation ranchers}, volume={41}, ISSN={1036-9872}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/rj18023}, DOI={10.1071/RJ18023}, abstractNote={Policymakers and scholars agree that the aging and declining number of ranchers is a serious problem for the future of ranching and range management. Studies show that recruiting and retaining new ranchers is difficult due to a complex mix of start-up costs, knowledge and skill requirements, and regulatory barriers. While research suggests that first-generation farmers are different demographically and require individualised information, there is limited research on first-generation ranchers (FGRs); at best they are generalised as beginning farmers in research and outreach programs. This is surprising given ranchers’ unique knowledge requirements relating to the production of food and fibre, and the management of vast areas of public and private land. Based on a rangeland decision-making survey of 507 California Cattlemen’s Association members, this paper examines similarities and divergences in socioeconomic factors, management practices, drought adaptation strategies, information needs, and values between FGRs and multigenerational ranchers (MGRs). Survey results indicate FGRs and MGRs are not statistically different demographically and have similar values; however, key differences include FGRs using fewer information sources about ranching, fewer general management practices, and fewer drought adaptation practices. FGRs are also more susceptible to drought, and are underserved by organisations. Their vulnerability is particularly concerning, as many have limited drought experience, are more likely to take risks, and are less likely to find value and/or participate in ranching organisations. The future of rangelands requires that organisations interested in conserving rangelands and supporting ranchers re-evaluate assumptions about why FGRs and MGRs have different information needs beyond simplistic demographic identity, and instead focus on their affinity as FGRs in order to understand the complexity of the processes underlying these differences. We end with suggestions for a research agenda to support the climate resiliency of FGRs and increase the efficacy of support organisations.}, number={3}, journal={The Rangeland Journal}, publisher={CSIRO Publishing}, author={Munden-Dixon, Kate and Tate, Kenneth and Cutts, Bethany and Roche, Leslie}, year={2019}, pages={189} }
 @article{cutts_greenlee_hornik_nigrelli_2019, title={Hyperlocal sustainabilities: theorizing action research for sustainability in the digital age}, volume={15}, ISSN={1862-4065 1862-4057}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11625-019-00694-9}, DOI={10.1007/s11625-019-00694-9}, number={1}, journal={Sustainability Science}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Greenlee, Andrew J. and Hornik, Kaitlyn and Nigrelli, Caitie A.}, year={2019}, month={Apr}, pages={315–331} }
 @article{cutts_minn_2018, title={Dead Grass: Foreclosure and the Production of Space in Maricopa County, Arizona}, volume={3}, ISSN={["2183-7635"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.17645/up.v3i3.1352}, DOI={10.17645/up.v3i3.1352}, abstractNote={A wide variety of economic, social, political and moral explanations have been given for why the foreclosure crisis of the late 2000s occurred. Yet many of the tensions provoked by the uptick in foreclosure proceedings, their resolution during the foreclosure recovery process, and the insight they provide into the function of American space remain unexplored. This article uses Lefebvre’s <em>The Production of Space</em> as a framework to explore the spatial and ecological contradictions of suburban development in Maricopa County (Phoenix), Arizona, USA, and the ways those contradictions were drawn into relief by the foreclosure crisis of the late 2000s. Analysis through this Lefebvrian lens uncovers symbolic meanings assigned to urban ecologies and their ruliness as a means of drawing legal devices such as nuisance laws and housing codes into a more-than-human frenzy. This article follows a growing tradition of scholarship that employs Lefebvrian insights to identify and explicate urban planning dilemmas.}, number={3}, journal={URBAN PLANNING}, publisher={Cogitatio}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Minn, Michael}, year={2018}, pages={16–25} }
 @article{schwarz_cadenasso_london_cutts_2018, title={Fertile Ground for Collaboration: Investing in Community-University Partnerships with Soil Money}, volume={100}, ISSN={0012-9623}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bes2.1479}, DOI={10.1002/bes2.1479}, number={1}, journal={The Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America}, publisher={Wiley}, author={Schwarz, K. and Cadenasso, M. L. and London, J. K. and Cutts, B. B.}, year={2018}, month={Nov}, pages={e01479} }
 @article{cutts_greenlee_prochaska_chantrill_contractor_wilhoit_abts_hornik_2018, title={Is a clean river fun for all? Recognizing social vulnerability in watershed planning}, volume={13}, ISSN={1932-6203}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0196416}, DOI={10.1371/journal.pone.0196416}, abstractNote={Watershed planning can lead to policy innovation and action toward environmental protection. However, groups often suffer from low engagement with communities that experience disparate impacts from flooding and water pollution. This can limit the capacity of watershed efforts to dismantle pernicious forms of social inequality. As a result, the benefits of environmental changes often flow to more empowered residents, short-changing the power of watershed-based planning as a tool to transform ecological, economic, and social relationships. The objectives of this paper are to assess whether the worldview of watershed planning actors are sufficiently attuned to local patterns of social vulnerability and whether locally significant patterns of social vulnerability can be adequately differentiated using conventional data sources. Drawing from 35 in-depth interviews with watershed planners and community stakeholders in the Milwaukee River Basin (WI, USA), we identify five unique definitions of social vulnerability. Watershed planners in our sample articulate a narrower range of social vulnerability definitions than other participants. All five definitions emphasize spatial and demographic characteristics consistent with existing ways of measuring social vulnerability. However, existing measures do not adequately differentiate among the spatio-temporal dynamics used to distinguish definitions. In response, we develop two new social vulnerability measures. The combination of interviews and demographic analyses in this study provides an assessment technique that can help watershed planners (a) understand the limits of their own conceptualization of social vulnerability and (b) acknowledge the importance of place-based vulnerabilities that may otherwise be obscured. We conclude by discussing how our methods can be a useful tool for identifying opportunities to disrupt social vulnerability in a watershed by evaluating how issue frames, outreach messages, and engagement tactics. The approach allows watershed planners to shift their own culture in order to consider socially vulnerable populations comprehensively.}, number={5}, journal={PLOS ONE}, publisher={Public Library of Science (PLoS)}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Greenlee, Andrew J. and Prochaska, Natalie K. and Chantrill, Carolina V. and Contractor, Annie B. and Wilhoit, Juliana M. and Abts, Nancy and Hornik, Kaitlyn}, editor={Doi, HideyukiEditor}, year={2018}, month={May}, pages={e0196416} }
 @article{mclaughlin_cutts_2018, title={Neither Knowledge Deficit nor NIMBY: Understanding Opposition to Hydraulic Fracturing as a Nuanced Coalition in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania (USA)}, volume={62}, ISSN={["1432-1009"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-018-1052-3}, DOI={10.1007/s00267-018-1052-3}, number={2}, journal={ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={McLaughlin, Danielle M. and Cutts, Bethany B.}, year={2018}, month={Aug}, pages={305–322} }
 @article{larson_lauber_kay_cutts_2017, title={Local Government Capacity to Respond to Environmental Change: Insights from Towns in New York State}, volume={60}, ISSN={0364-152X 1432-1009}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00267-017-0860-1}, DOI={10.1007/s00267-017-0860-1}, number={1}, journal={Environmental Management}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={Larson, Lincoln R. and Lauber, T. Bruce and Kay, David L. and Cutts, Bethany B.}, year={2017}, month={Apr}, pages={118–135} }
 @article{cutts_london_meiners_schwarz_cadenasso_2017, title={Moving dirt: soil, lead, and the dynamic spatial politics of urban gardening}, volume={22}, ISSN={1354-9839 1469-6711}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2017.1320539}, DOI={10.1080/13549839.2017.1320539}, abstractNote={ABSTRACTUrban gardens are often heralded as places for building social, physical, and environmental health. Yet they are also sites of significant conflict based on competing political, economic, and ecological projects. These projects range from radical re-envisionings of liberatory urban spaces, reformist aesthetic and sanitary improvement programmes, to underwriting the production of the neo-liberal city. These projects are based on divergent visions of the garden ground itself, in particular, whether this is soil (the fertile and living source for growing food and social values) or dirt (an inert and even problematic substrate to be removed or built upon for development purposes). These are not fixed or mutually exclusive categories, but are unstable as soil/dirt moves in discursive and material ways over time and space. Contaminants such as lead in the soil contribute to this instability, reframing fertile soil as dangerous dirt. To understand this discursive and material movement of soil/dirt over t...}, number={8}, journal={Local Environment}, publisher={Informa UK Limited}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and London, Jonathan K. and Meiners, Shaina and Schwarz, Kirsten and Cadenasso, Mary L.}, year={2017}, month={May}, pages={998–1018} }
 @article{london_schwarz_cadenasso_cutts_mason_lim_valenzuela-garcia_smith_2017, title={Weaving Community-University Research and Action Partnerships for environmental justice}, volume={16}, ISSN={1476-7503 1741-2617}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1476750316678915}, DOI={10.1177/1476750316678915}, abstractNote={This article is a case study of one Community-University Research and Action Partnership (CURAP) focused on soil lead, urban gardening, and environmental justice in Sacramento, California. We argue that creating and sustaining CURAPs requires a process of weaving together diverse strands of knowledge, resources, and lines of accountability that connect all parties involved. Like the physical process of weaving fabric, weaving CURAPs involve creative and collaborative uses and responses to tension between all elements of a partnership. This is especially true in long-term partnerships intended to address systemic environmental injustices. This case highlights the power relationships and challenges associated with such partnerships and presents several lessons to enrich the scholarship and practices of action research.}, number={2}, journal={Action Research}, publisher={SAGE Publications}, author={London, Jonathan K and Schwarz, Kirsten and Cadenasso, Mary L and Cutts, Bethany B and Mason, Charles, Jr and Lim, Jeanette and Valenzuela-Garcia, Katie and Smith, Heather}, year={2017}, month={Mar}, pages={173–189} }
 @article{hornik_cutts_greenlee_2016, title={Community Theories of Change: Linking Environmental Justice to Sustainability through Stakeholder Perceptions in Milwaukee (WI, USA)}, volume={13}, ISSN={1660-4601}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph13100979}, DOI={10.3390/ijerph13100979}, abstractNote={Environmental justice and sustainability are compatible lenses, yet action toward equity is often missing from urban sustainability initiatives. This study aims to assess the cohesion of these frameworks in practice. To do this, we parse individuals' theories of change, or how they identify and propose to resolve environmental injustices in the pursuit of sustainability. We posit that these theories of change are comprised of three main components: (1) perceived environmental benefits and burdens; (2) the causal pathways of environmental and social injustice; and (3) visions for positive change. Drawing from 35 stakeholder interviews in Milwaukee (WI, USA) we examine individual and institutional perspectives on environmental and social change and their links to the production of injustice. Our findings reveal that participants do not distinguish between environmental and social injustices. Instead, both social and environmental factors are implicated in injustice. Furthermore, we identify two mental maps for how social and economic change reproduce injustice. These findings suggest the need to reorient how urban injustice is considered and make efforts to acknowledge how a diversity of operational theories of change could either be divisive or could bring environmental justice and sustainability initiatives together.}, number={10}, journal={International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health}, publisher={MDPI AG}, author={Hornik, Kaitlyn and Cutts, Bethany and Greenlee, Andrew}, year={2016}, month={Sep}, pages={979} }
 @inbook{cutts_2016, title={Everything Cannot Be Equal: Ranking Priorities and Revealing Worldviews to Guide Watershed Management}, ISBN={9783319285412 9783319285436}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28543-6_19}, DOI={10.1007/978-3-319-28543-6_19}, booktitle={Learner-Centered Teaching Activities for Environmental and Sustainability Studies}, publisher={Springer International Publishing}, author={Cutts, Bethany B.}, year={2016}, pages={149–154} }
 @article{schwarz_cutts_london_cadenasso_2016, title={Growing Gardens in Shrinking Cities: A Solution to the Soil Lead Problem?}, volume={8}, ISSN={2071-1050}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su8020141}, DOI={10.3390/su8020141}, abstractNote={As cities shrink, they often leave a patchwork of vacancy on the landscape. The maintenance of vacant lands and eventual transformation to sustainable land uses is a challenge all cities face, but one that is particularly pronounced in shrinking cities. Vacant lands can support sustainability initiatives, specifically the expansion of urban gardens and local food production. However, many shrinking cities are the same aging cities that have experienced the highest soil lead burdens from their industrial past as well as the historic use of lead-based paint and leaded gasoline. Elevated soil lead is often viewed as a barrier to urban agriculture and managing for multiple ecosystem services, including food production and reduced soil lead exposure, remains a challenge. In this paper, we argue that a shift in framing the soil lead and gardening issue from potential conflict to potential solution can advance both urban sustainability goals and support healthy gardening efforts. Urban gardening as a potential solution to the soil lead problem stems from investment in place and is realized through multiple activities, in particular (1) soil management, including soil testing and the addition of amendments, and (2) social network and community building that leverages resources and knowledge.}, number={2}, journal={Sustainability}, publisher={MDPI AG}, author={Schwarz, Kirsten and Cutts, Bethany and London, Jonathan and Cadenasso, Mary}, year={2016}, month={Feb}, pages={141} }
 @article{cutts_fang_hornik_london_schwarz_cadenasso_2016, title={Media Frames and Shifting Places of Environmental (In)Justice: A Qualitative Historical Geographic Information System Method}, volume={9}, ISSN={1939-4071 1937-5174}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/env.2015.0027}, DOI={10.1089/env.2015.0027}, abstractNote={Abstract Newspapers are underused as a source of spatial data in environmental justice research. Recent advances in qualitative historical geographic information systems (QHGIS) provide an opportunity for deeper investigation into how newspapers reflect changing meanings of place in relation to environmental burden and environmental benefit. This article introduces a protocol to identify and map locations associated with different media frames. We apply QHGIS to urban gardening and soil lead issues reported in Sacramento, California. We find that the QHGIS method enhances conventional approaches to case study archival research and media analysis because it reveals: (a) the distribution of public narratives of environmental concern across the city, (b) the politics embedded in location names, (c) place name-changes that might otherwise lead to inaccurate GIS analysis, and (d) how locations can be used as a framing device to communicate environmental concerns. The method can enhance research in which the hi...}, number={1}, journal={Environmental Justice}, publisher={Mary Ann Liebert Inc}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Fang, Danqi and Hornik, Kaitlyn and London, Jonathan K. and Schwarz, Kirsten and Cadenasso, Mary L.}, year={2016}, month={Feb}, pages={23–28} }
 @article{muñoz-erickson_cutts_2016, title={Structural dimensions of knowledge-action networks for sustainability}, volume={18}, ISSN={1877-3435}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2015.08.013}, DOI={10.1016/j.cosust.2015.08.013}, abstractNote={Research on the influence of social network structure over flows of knowledge in support of sustainability governance and action has recently flourished. These studies highlight three challenges to evaluating knowledge-action networks: first, defining boundaries; second, characterizing power distributions; and third, identifying obstacles to knowledge sharing and connectivity. We present concepts from social network analysis (SNA) commonly found to influence knowledge flows. We examine applications of SNA from across the social sciences and use the case of land governance in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as an illustration of how all three challenges affect knowledge-action networks. SNA is a useful way to understand and overcome many challenges to knowledge flow and thus help improve informational governance strategies for sustainability.}, journal={Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Muñoz-Erickson, Tischa A and Cutts, Bethany B}, year={2016}, month={Feb}, pages={56–64} }
 @article{minn_cutts_greenberg_pavlovic_fraterrigo_turner_2015, title={Detection of foreclosure-related landscape management changes using Landsat}, volume={62}, ISSN={0143-6228}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2015.04.023}, DOI={10.1016/j.apgeog.2015.04.023}, abstractNote={The volume of properties affected by foreclosure over the past decade suggests the potential for dramatic change in vegetation cover due to changes in management. Yet, the specific pathology of each foreclosure, the temporal asynchrony among foreclosures, and differences in the area available for vegetation growth across properties presents challenges to observing and measuring change. This paper develops and tests a difference in deviations approach that compares the parcel NDVI to a neighborhood norm before and after foreclosure. The difference in deviations approach addresses the challenges of separating parcel-level change corresponding to foreclosure and identifies changes on both small and large parcels. The method relies on a time series of Landsat Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data, individual home foreclosure records and property tax assessment data for Maricopa County, Arizona from 2002 to 2012. To establish the level of difference associated with observable landscape change, we use a probit regression model, coding Google Earth images for properties across the range of observed deviations of difference. The basic assumption underlying the approach is that if foreclosure coincides with a change in management, it will lead to changes in vegetation structure and thus, NDVI values. We estimate that 13% of home foreclosures in Maricopa County over the period from 2002 to 2012 resulted in declines in vegetation whereas 6.5% resulted in vegetation increases. Future uses of this method for understanding landscape management in residential landscapes are discussed.}, journal={Applied Geography}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Minn, Michael and Cutts, Bethany B. and Greenberg, Jonathan A. and Pavlovic, Nathan and Fraterrigo, Jennifer M. and Turner, V. Kelly}, year={2015}, month={Aug}, pages={217–224} }
 @article{cutts_sinclair_strauch_slivnick_emmons_2015, title={Environmental Justice and Emerging Information Communication Technology: A Review for U.S. Natural Disaster Management}, volume={8}, ISSN={1939-4071 1937-5174}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/env.2015.0012}, DOI={10.1089/env.2015.0012}, abstractNote={Abstract The Internet age has led to a proliferation of so-called emerging information communication technologies (eICTs). As the personal use of the Internet, mobile devices, and social media has expanded and evolved, these eICTs have been incorporated into strategies to improve risk communication associated with natural disaster management. A review of eICT use as part of natural disaster communication is critical to knowing whether the new technologies support the needs and risk cultures of historically disenfranchised populations and whether they ultimately provide an opportunity to better address both acute and chronic environmental hazards. There is a need to know whether eICTs differ from other technologies in the ways that they exacerbate old environmental injustices and/or create new ones. This article reviews the eICT literature based with a focus on the U.S. Through a review of published and gray literature, we evaluate whether research articles acknowledge or directly address environmental and...}, number={4}, journal={Environmental Justice}, publisher={Mary Ann Liebert Inc}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Sinclair, Kristina M. and Strauch, Michaele A. and Slivnick, Brian and Emmons, Zoe}, year={2015}, month={Aug}, pages={144–150} }
 @article{roche_cutts_derner_lubell_tate_2015, title={On-Ranch Grazing Strategies: Context for the Rotational Grazing Dilemma}, volume={68}, ISSN={1550-7424}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2015.03.011}, DOI={10.1016/j.rama.2015.03.011}, abstractNote={Considerable debate remains over the efficacy of rotational grazing systems to enhance conservation and agricultural production goals on rangelands. We analyzed responses to grazing management questions in the Rangeland Decision Making Surveys of 765 California and Wyoming ranchers in order to characterize on-ranch grazing strategies and identify variables influencing strategy adoption. Two-thirds of respondents practice on-ranch rotational grazing strategies, indicating ranchers do experience benefits from rotation which have not been documented in experimental comparisons of rotational and continuous grazing systems. Limited on-ranch adoption of intensive rotational strategies (5% of respondents) indicates potential agreement between research and management perceptions about the success of this particular strategy for achieving primary livestock production goals. Over 93% of all rotational grazer respondents were characterized as using extensive intragrowing season rotation with moderate (few wk to mo) grazing period durations, moderate (2.4–8 ha·animal unit) livestock densities, and growing season rest periods. Variables associated with ranchers’ grazing preferences included a mixture of human dimensions (goal setting, views on experiment and risk tolerance, information networks), ranch characteristics (total number of livestock, land types comprising ranch), and ecoregions. We also found that the majority of grazing systems research has largely been conducted at spatial and temporal scales that are orders of magnitude finer than conditions under which on-ranch adaptive grazing management strategies have been developed. Resolving the discrepancies between the grazing systems research and management knowledge base will require substantive communication and novel approaches to participatory research between scientists and managers.}, number={3}, journal={Rangeland Ecology & Management}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Roche, L.M. and Cutts, B.B. and Derner, J.D. and Lubell, M.N. and Tate, K.W.}, year={2015}, month={May}, pages={248–256} }
 @article{cutts_muñoz-erickson_shutters_2015, title={Public Representation in Water Management—A Network Analysis of Organization and Public Perceptions in Phoenix, Arizona}, volume={28}, ISSN={0894-1920 1521-0723}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2015.1020581}, DOI={10.1080/08941920.2015.1020581}, abstractNote={To better accomplish their mission of an informed public, environmental education organizations often exchange ideas, share financing, and distribute overhead through collaboration. Yet it remains to be seen whether benefits of these collaborations extend to the public. We examine two possible benefits: the ability of the organizations to act as representatives of the public interest, and equitable access to environmental educational materials. We model patterns of public access to water-related education across organizations using two surveys in metropolitan Phoenix, AZ. This enables the study of interorganizational social networks and public outcomes. Results support the idea that environmental education organizations could provide a credible proxy for direct citizen participation. However, not all organizations are equivalently engaged with historically underrepresented groups like women, minority racial and ethnic groups, and those who rent their home. The implications for more inclusive environmental...}, number={12}, journal={Society & Natural Resources}, publisher={Informa UK Limited}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Muñoz-Erickson, Tischa A. and Shutters, Shade T.}, year={2015}, month={May}, pages={1340–1357} }
 @article{roche_schohr_derner_lubell_cutts_kachergis_eviner_tate_2015, title={Sustaining Working Rangelands: Insights from Rancher Decision Making}, volume={68}, ISSN={1550-7424}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2015.07.006}, DOI={10.1016/j.rama.2015.07.006}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT Grazed rangeland ecosystems encompass diverse global land resources and are complex social-ecological systems from which society demands both goods (e.g., livestock and forage production) and services (e.g., abundant and high-quality water). Including the ranching community's perceptions, knowledge, and decision-making is essential to advancing the ongoing dialogue to define sustainable working rangelands. We surveyed 507 (33% response rate) California ranchers to gain insight into key factors shaping their decision-making, perspectives on effective management practices and ranching information sources, as well as their concerns. First, we found that variation in ranch structure, management goals, and decision making across California's ranching operations aligns with the call from sustainability science to maintain flexibility at multiple scales to support the suite of economic and ecological services they can provide. The diversity in ranching operations highlights why single-policy and managem...}, number={5}, journal={Rangeland Ecology & Management}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Roche, Leslie M. and Schohr, Tracy K. and Derner, Justin D. and Lubell, Mark N. and Cutts, Bethany B. and Kachergis, Emily and Eviner, Valerie T. and Tate, Kenneth W.}, year={2015}, month={Sep}, pages={383–389} }
 @article{kachergis_derner_cutts_roche_eviner_lubell_tate_2014, title={Increasing flexibility in rangeland management during drought}, volume={5}, ISSN={2150-8925}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/ES13-00402.1}, DOI={10.1890/ES13-00402.1}, abstractNote={Extreme droughts like the recent 2011-2013 drought impacting the central and western United States present a challenge to sustaining livestock ranching operations and the ecosystem goods and services they produce. Wyoming ranchers manage half of this drought-prone state and are at the forefront of this challenge. We examined Wyoming ranchers' drought management strategies and how ranch characteristics affect drought management flexibility, a key component of resilience, through a mail survey. We find that many survey respondents manage drought in similar ways, by selling livestock and buying feed, highlighting the market risks associated with drought. Ranches that are larger, include yearling livestock, use shorter grazing periods, and/or incorporate alternative on-ranch activities (e.g., hunting) use more drought management practices and thus have greater flexibility. Larger ranches experience fewer drought impacts, highlighting advantages of a larger resource base. Our findings suggest three components of national drought policy that encourages flexibility and thus increases resilience of ranches to drought: (1) encouraging forage-sharing mechanisms; (2) promoting income diversification that is independent of climatic variability; and (3) facilitating a shift to diversified livestock production systems. These measures could increase sustainability of ranching livelihoods and provision of ecosystem services despite predicted increases in intensity and duration of future droughts. © 2014 Kachergis et al.}, number={6}, journal={Ecosphere}, publisher={Wiley}, author={Kachergis, Emily and Derner, Justin D. and Cutts, Bethany B. and Roche, Leslie M. and Eviner, Valerie T. and Lubell, Mark N. and Tate, Kenneth W.}, year={2014}, month={Jun}, pages={art77–art77} }
 @article{lubell_cutts_roche_hamilton_derner_kachergis_tate_2013, title={Conservation Program Participation and Adaptive Rangeland Decision-Making}, volume={66}, ISSN={1550-7424}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.2111/rem-d-13-00025.1}, DOI={10.2111/rem-d-13-00025.1}, abstractNote={This paper analyzes rancher participation in conservation programs in the context of a social-ecological framework for adaptive rangeland decision-making. We argue that conservation programs are best understood as one of many strategies of adaptively managing rangelands in ways that sustain livelihoods and ecosystem services. The framework hypothesizes four categories of variables affecting conservation program participation: operation/operator characteristics, time horizon, social network connections, and social values. Based on a mail survey of California ranchers, multinomial logit models are used to estimate the impact of these variables on different levels of rancher involvement in conservation programs. The findings suggest that ranchers with larger amounts of land, an orientation towards the future, and who are opinion leaders with access to conservation information, are more likely to participate in conservation programs.}, number={6}, journal={Rangeland Ecology & Management}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Lubell, M.N. and Cutts, B.B. and Roche, L.M. and Hamilton, M. and Derner, J.D. and Kachergis, E. and Tate, K.W.}, year={2013}, month={Nov}, pages={609–620} }
 @article{cutts_moore_fox-gowda_knox_kinzig_2013, title={Testing Neighborhood, Information Seeking, and Attitudes as Explanations of Environmental Knowledge Using Random Forest and Conditional Inference Models}, volume={65}, ISSN={0033-0124 1467-9272}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00330124.2012.724347}, DOI={10.1080/00330124.2012.724347}, abstractNote={This article tests the explanatory power and interactions among five alternative explanations of environmental knowledge: (1) local information availability, (2) neighborhood characteristics, (3) environmental attitudes, (4) personal empowerment, and (5) information seeking. Using random forest and conditional inference trees, the article analyzes survey responses and finds that attitudes about personal empowerment and frequent information seeking are the strongest predictors of knowledge. The study offers random forest and conditional inference trees as statistical tools for complex data sets and studies that test hypotheses generated from multiple theories. We discuss the influence of knowledge differences over inclusive sustainability discussions.}, number={4}, journal={The Professional Geographer}, publisher={Informa UK Limited}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Moore, Nicholas and Fox-Gowda, Ariana and Knox, Allyn C. and Kinzig, Ann}, year={2013}, month={Nov}, pages={561–579} }
 @inbook{cutts_2012, title={Evaluating Collective Effects: A Participatory Approach to Mapping Public Information About Water Issues in an Uncertain and Politicized Context}, ISBN={9789400747333 9789400747340}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4734-0_3}, DOI={10.1007/978-94-007-4734-0_3}, booktitle={Geospatial Tools for Urban Water Resources}, publisher={Springer Netherlands}, author={Cutts, Bethany B.}, year={2012}, month={Jul}, pages={37–60} }
 @article{cutts_2012, title={Spatial interactions between organizations and the symbolic landscapes created by their public information campaigns}, volume={15}, ISSN={1366-7017 1996-9759}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.2166/wp.2012.059}, DOI={10.2166/wp.2012.059}, abstractNote={This study investigates public information as a component of the democratic process, advancing previous frameworks by considering information as a spatial product of multiple governmental and civil society organizations. The symbolic weight of information campaigns is a critical component of two democratic processes: awareness of the public's vulnerability to formal water policy change and the perception within the public that the policy space is open to their participation. This research examines the locations of water-centered public information across 31 organizations in metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona, USA. The patterns of disparities found in the study indicate that the neighborhoods in the eastern portion of the study region receive more information than those in Phoenix or cities to the west. There is also more information in areas with large numbers of rental homes, but less information in regions with larger Latino populations. Results support a need to evaluate new initiatives for public information with respect to the content and distribution of materials originating from multiple sources. Evaluating the patterns created by water information providers could aid more strategic coordination among groups and provide a bellwether of whether public interests are adequately considered in local water decision-making processes and the distribution of outcomes.}, number={1}, journal={Water Policy}, publisher={IWA Publishing}, author={Cutts, Bethany B.}, year={2012}, month={Oct}, pages={61–78} }
 @article{cutts_white_kinzig_2011, title={Participatory geographic information systems for the co-production of science and policy in an emerging boundary organization}, volume={14}, ISSN={1462-9011}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2011.05.012}, DOI={10.1016/j.envsci.2011.05.012}, abstractNote={► Boundary organizations (BO) and participatory geographic information systems (PGIS) frameworks both apply to spatially explicit research at the science–policy nexus. ► BO benefits from the attention to process and relationships within the policy community provided by PGIS. PGIS benefits from the explicit recognition of science as a stakeholder group in BO. ► Fusing approaches allows for deeper examination of the processes shaping the science–policy interface and create opportunities for BO projects funded by science to become accountable to policy. Boundary organizations are designed to stabilize the relationship between science and policy communities. The literature emphasizes that products (i.e., boundary objects) should be salient, legitimate, and credible to both communities. The related field of participatory geographic information systems (PGIS) focuses on creating useful products (i.e., maps and geographic information systems) in an explicitly political environment. PGIS focuses more directly on the ways in which people may engage with information and power dynamics between actors. We argue that the epistemological parallels between PGIS and boundary organization research create an opportunity to fuse approaches to the advantage of both fields. Combining approaches facilitates communication and provides opportunities to negotiate conflict between science and policy. We apply the frames to a public information project conducted in a water resource decision-making boundary organization in Phoenix, Arizona. Through participatory action research, we evaluate the extent to which relationships between saliency, legitimacy, and credibility across change through time and interact with one another. We find that the boundary organization framework provides a unique role for science in framing questions and evaluating the feasibility of environmental management solutions. However, it neither guides the process of generating boundary objects nor adequately conceptualizes heterogeneity within the policy community. PGIS highlights processes internal to the policy community driving low levels of political support for initial maps of public information programs. Credibility improved after participants discussed why they felt maps lacked legitimacy, and credibility. Discussion among policy makers at a meeting convened by scientists improved legitimacy and credibility. Despite policy involvement in the process of generating research questions, the saliency of the map remained low. Policy stakeholders viewed the map as a necessary precursor to more usable science in the future rather than a as boundary object per se. The framework developed and applied in this paper is relevant to research centers and projects that intend to link policy and science that have stronger formal ties of accountability to science through funding.}, number={8}, journal={Environmental Science & Policy}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and White, Dave D. and Kinzig, Ann P.}, year={2011}, month={Dec}, pages={977–985} }
 @article{muñoz-erickson_cutts_larson_neff_darby_bolin_wutich_2010, title={Spanning boundaries in an Arizona watershed partnership: information networks as tools for entrenchment or ties for cooperation?}, volume={15}, url={http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol15/iss3/art22/}, number={3}, journal={Ecology & Society}, author={Muñoz-Erickson, T. and Cutts, B.B. and Larson, E.K. and Neff, M. and Darby, K.J. and Bolin, B. and Wutich, A.}, year={2010}, pages={22} }
 @article{cutts_darby_boone_brewis_2009, title={City structure, obesity, and environmental justice: An integrated analysis of physical and social barriers to walkable streets and park access}, volume={69}, ISSN={0277-9536}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.08.020}, DOI={10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.08.020}, abstractNote={Local parks and walkable neighborhoods are commonly cited as elements of the urban environment that promote physical activity and reduce obesity risk. When those vulnerable to obesity-related diseases live in neighborhoods without these qualities, it works against environmental justice goals that aim for a fair distribution of amenities. We use geographic information systems (GIS) to evaluate the relationship between the distribution of populations vulnerable to obesity and proximity to parks and walkable street networks in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Though previous studies have used GIS to assess the distribution of access to opportunities for physical activity, none have analyzed access to both parks and walkable resources at once. Neither have they included data that reflects findings on a smaller scale indicating that perceptions of resource quality, safety, and cultural relevance also affect physical activity levels. We include these safety and quality factors in our study through statistical data on traffic fatalities, crime rates and park size. We find that, counter to predictions, subpopulations generally considered vulnerable to obesity (and environmental injustices more generally) are more likely to live in walkable neighborhoods and have better walking access to neighborhood parks than other groups in Phoenix. However, crime is highest in walkable neighborhoods with large Latino/a and African-American populations and parks are smaller in areas populated by Latino/as. Given the higher prevalence of obesity and related diseases in lower income and minority populations in Phoenix, the results suggest that benefits of built environments may be offset by social characteristics. Our most consistent finding indicates a strong negative relationship between the percentage of the population under 18 years of age living in an area and the likelihood that the structure of the built environment supports physical activity. Children under 18 are significantly underrepresented in regions deemed highly walkable and those with access to parks.}, number={9}, journal={Social Science & Medicine}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Darby, Kate J. and Boone, Christopher G. and Brewis, Alexandra}, year={2009}, month={Nov}, pages={1314–1322} }
 @article{cutts_darby_boone_brewis_2009, title={City structure, obesity, and environmental justice: An integrated analysis of physical and social barriers to walkable streets and park access}, volume={69}, ISSN={0277-9536}, DOI={10.1016/S9999-9994(09)20424-7}, abstractNote={Local parks and walkable neighborhoods are commonly cited as elements of the urban environment that promote physical activity and reduce obesity risk. When those vulnerable to obesity-related diseases live in neighborhoods without these qualities, it works against environmental justice goals that aim for a fair distribution of amenities. We use geographic information systems (GIS) to evaluate the relationship between the distribution of populations vulnerable to obesity and proximity to parks and walkable street networks in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Though previous studies have used GIS to assess the distribution of access to opportunities for physical activity, none have analyzed access to both parks and walkable resources at once. Neither have they included data that reflects findings on a smaller scale indicating that perceptions of resource quality, safety, and cultural relevance also affect physical activity levels. We include these safety and quality factors in our study through statistical data on traffic fatalities, crime rates and park size. We find that, counter to predictions, subpopulations generally considered vulnerable to obesity (and environmental injustices more generally) are more likely to live in walkable neighborhoods and have better walking access to neighborhood parks than other groups in Phoenix. However, crime is highest in walkable neighborhoods with large Latino/a and African-American populations and parks are smaller in areas populated by Latino/as. Given the higher prevalence of obesity and related diseases in lower income and minority populations in Phoenix, the results suggest that benefits of built environments may be offset by social characteristics. Our most consistent finding indicates a strong negative relationship between the percentage of the population under 18 years of age living in an area and the likelihood that the structure of the built environment supports physical activity. Children under 18 are significantly underrepresented in regions deemed highly walkable and those with access to parks.}, number={9}, journal={Social Science & Medicine}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Cutts, Bethany B. and Darby, Kate J. and Boone, Christopher G. and Brewis, Alexandra}, year={2009}, month={Nov}, pages={1314–1322} }
 @article{cutts_saltz_elser_2008, title={Insights into the Interactions between Educational Messages: Looking across Multiple Organizations Addressing Water Issues in Maricopa County, Arizona}, volume={7}, ISSN={1533-015X 1533-0389}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15330150802194904}, DOI={10.1080/15330150802194904}, abstractNote={The public receives environmental information from a variety of sources. Evaluation of a single program or one organization's effort is incomplete. Through surveys and interviews, we evaluate the cumulative impact of outreach by 20 water-related organizations in Maricopa County, Arizona. Household water conservation is a topic addressed by 18 organizations whereas 2 share information on water policy. Similar foci across organizations may help reinforce messages about water conservation, quality, or drought, but can also lead to gaps in water education. These gaps may decrease the relevance of water information to some audiences. Future research should examine additional ways that interorganizational relationships affect the geography of information opportunities and its relevance to unique populations.}, number={1-2}, journal={Applied Environmental Education & Communication}, publisher={Informa UK Limited}, author={Cutts, Bethany and Saltz, Charlene and Elser, Monica}, year={2008}, month={Aug}, pages={40–50} }