Theme 4: Climate-Vulnerable Infrastructure and Health
Climate-related factors, such as heightened air pollution, droughts, greenhouse gas emissions, and particulate matter (PM2.5), have been identified as contributing to negative health outcomes, including respiratory illnesses. Further, regions characterized by intensive agricultural activities pose a heightened risk of asthma. The Mississippi Delta region stands out with a disproportionately high prevalence of asthma, especially among African American children. In addition to respiratory health challenges posed by climate-related factors, residents in the Mississippi Delta region struggle with enduring obstacles to accessing healthcare services and healthy foods. The availability of health infrastructure in this region is limited. Residents must travel long distances to reach healthcare facilities and food stores offering healthy choices, exacerbating their overall health outcomes. The overarching theme of the study centers around three primary objectives.
Objectives
- Understand barriers in access to healthcare infrastructure experienced by residents living in natural hazards-prone areas.
- Investigate the food access, security, and resiliency among Mississippi Delta residents.
- Assess the impact of climate change and agriculture activities on residents' health outcomes.
Methodology
Mixed method approaches are employed, combining primary and secondary data from different sources. Primary data include participatory maps drawn by research participants, survey responses, and air quality indexes recorded by air quality monitoring devices. In addition, secondary data will be gathered from the American Community Survey (ACS) provided by the US Census Bureau as well as the CDC Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) and PLACES data.
Objective 1
A participatory GIS mapping session will be conducted with 30-40 participants in two towns in the Mississippi Delta (Rolling Fork and Belzoni). Participatory maps from PGIS sessions will be digitized and analyzed. Maps will be generated based on information shared by the research participants throughout the session. After generating results, research participants will be reconvinced to share the results and findings with research participants.
Objective 2
An online survey will be used to collect primary data related to Mississippi Delta residents' access to healthy foods. The survey will be distributed online via social media, and the flyer with the QR code to the survey will be distributed in various public places across the Mississippi Delta, including churches, farmer's markets, grocery stores, corner stores, campuses, and other public places.
Objective 3
Secondary data from the CDC and the US Census will be combined, which will be integrated with the primary data collected from air monitoring equipment installed in selected places in the Mississippi Delta. Further, GIS, spatial and statistical analyses, and modeling will be used to understand the impacts of climate change and agricultural activities on residents' health outcomes.
Evaluation
Success will be evaluated based on the progress of achieving each research objective and research question. Further, our success will also be measured in the effectiveness of using selective methodologies and equipment. Three objectives in Theme 4 research aim to produce and publish three scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals. Thus, the research publication can measure the study's performance.