Women of Color in Academia Advancing Environmental Justice
Women of Color in Academia Advancing Environmental Justice is a community-engaged research and training initiative led by Angie Denisse Otiniano Verissimo at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health. The project addresses persistent environmental inequities in Los Angeles—where many communities of color face disproportionate environmental burdens—alongside structural disparities in funding for organizations led by marginalized groups. Through the Women of Color in Academia (WOCA) initiative, the project seeks to build equitable partnerships with grassroots organizations, including ALMA Backyard Farms, to co-develop community-driven environmental justice research that centers local knowledge, lived experience, and priorities.
At the same time, the project invests in cultivating the next generation of public health leaders by training graduate students—especially those from underrepresented backgrounds—in community-based participatory research (CBPR). Through a new interdisciplinary course and hands-on collaboration with community partners, students will gain practical skills in equity-centered research, mentorship, and language justice while contributing to real-world environmental justice efforts. By integrating community leadership with academic training, WOCA advances a sustainable, reciprocal model for addressing environmental injustice and fostering inclusive leadership in public health.
Caption: Photo via Women of Color in the Arts (WOCA).
People
Angie Ontiniano
Fielding School of Public Health
Angie Denisse Otiniano Verissimo is an Associate Professor of Teaching at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health where she earned her PhD and MPH. She completed her Postdoctoral Fellowship at the UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs funded by the National Institutes of Health. Her research examines (1) how discrimination contributes to health disparities, particularly among the Latine community, (2) the health and social advantages of engaging community members in research and intervention processes, such as through the Promotor Model, and (3) interventions that incorporate virtual reality as a means of storytelling and healing. She has published her research in the American Journal of Public Health and coauthored a chapter in “The Cost of Racism for People of Color: Contextualizing Experiences of Discrimination” published through the American Psychological Association. She has been involved in several community-based programs and projects that bring services directly to community members and acknowledge the expertise of community members.
