Resident Experiences with Community-Based Soil Testing in Buffalo, NY

An image of urban backyard garden in mid-transition, featuring raised beds, exposed soil, volunteer plants, and reused materials. The scene highlights hands-on soil care and the everyday labor of urban food production.

Help document lead contamination in Buffalo neighborhoods while learning how community-based science can build community power for environmental justice. 

Project is Not Currently Available

This project has reached full capacity for the current term. Please check back next semester for updates.

Project description

As part of the new UB Urban Soil Co-Lab, this project investigates how Buffalo residents experience and respond to soil testing for heavy metals like lead, and how community-based science can build trust and civic engagement around environmental health. The students will work with community partners on this study, Open Buffalo and Citizen Science Community Resources, to document residents’ relationships to soil, track contamination “hotspots,” and co-develop educational and technological tools for soil safety. Students will assist with field sampling, data analysis, and open-ended interviews. 

Project outcome

Each student will contribute to a public-facing research output, such as a poster or presentation for the UB Undergraduate Research Conference, that synthesizes soil testing data, spatial analysis, and/or community perspectives. Students will also help produce community report-back materials, including maps, brief written summaries, and educational handouts that translate soil testing results for residents and partner organizations.

Collectively, the project will generate a curated dataset and GIS-based contamination map for use by community partners, as well as coded interview excerpts or analytic memos documenting resident experiences with soil testing and environmental risk. Advanced students may additionally contribute to a co-authored community report, policy brief, or academic manuscript emerging from the Urban Soil Co-Lab. 

Project details

Timing, eligibility and other details
Length of commitment Longer than a semester (about 6-9 months)
Start time Fall, Summer
In-person, remote, or hybrid? Hybrid
Level of collaboration Large group collaboration (4+ students) 
Benefits Stipend
Who is eligible All undergraduate students with experience in any of these areas: qualitative social science research methods, GIS, environmental science, urban policy.

Core partners

Project mentor

Lourdes Vera

Assistant Professor

Sociology and Criminology

Phone: (716) 903-3498

Email: lavera@buffalo.edu

Start the project

  1. Email the project mentor using the contact information above to express your interest and get approval to work on the project. (Here are helpful tips on how to contact a project mentor.)
  2. After you receive approval from the mentor to start this project, click the button to start the digital badge. (Learn more about ELN's digital badge options.) 
Start the Digital Badge

Preparation activities

Once you begin the digital badge series, you will have access to all the necessary activities and instructions. Your mentor has indicated they would like you to also complete the specific preparation activities below. After you’re approved to begin the project, your mentor will send the relevant materials. Please reference this when you get to Step 2 of the Preparation Phase. 

Before beginning the project, students must complete the following onboarding activities to familiarize themselves with the lab infrastructure and ethical grounding.

  1. Lab & Platform Onboarding
    Students will complete a guided onboarding activity to familiarize themselves with the Urban Soil Co-Lab’s digital infrastructure, including Microsoft Teams and SharePoint. Once they join, they will be added to the CAS Urban Soil CoLab Team. They will review the lab channels, locate core documents on SharePoint, and complete a short checklist confirming access, file navigation, and communication norms.
    Deliverable: Adding own tasks to Microsoft Teams Planner.

  2. Foundational Readings on Environmental Justice & Soil Health
    Students will read a short, accessible text on environmental justice, urban soil contamination, and community-based science.
    Deliverable: A 1-paragraph reflection summarizing key concepts and identifying questions relevant to the project.

  3. Literature & Research Orientation
    Students will meet with a UB Subject Librarian or use curated library guides to identify scholarly and public-facing sources related to the research project. They will learn how to use Zotero.
    Deliverable: Produce a brief annotated bibliography using Zotero (5–7 sources).

  4. Research Ethics & Community Engagement Training
    Students will complete research ethics training and review protocols on informed consent, community-based interviewing, and responsible data stewardship.
    Deliverable: CITI Community-Based Research Training.

Keywords

environmental justice, public health, sociology, urban policy, planning, environmental studies, GIS, policy