# Engaging Community in the Development of Low-Cost Technologies for Environmental Monitoring to Promote Environmental Health Literacy in a Low-Trust Setting

> **NIH NIH K01** · MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $155,497

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
My research objective in this Transition to Independent Environmental Health Research (TIEHR) Career Award
(K01) proposal is to assess the impact of co-developed, low-cost technologies for water quality monitoring on
environmental health literacy (EHL) and community-efficacy to protect public health. My ultimate career goal is
to establish evidence-based pathways for engaging with communities to enhance public health through the co-
development of low-cost technologies to meet unmet community scientific needs. Through community-based
participatory research (CBPR) methods, I will address the question, what role do co-produced, low-cost
technologies play in community capacity for mobilizing to address health inequities? The public health
emergency in Flint, Michigan that began in April 2014 when the city switched water sources highlighted a national
crisis around water infrastructure in the United States that is complicated by a lack of a sense of shared
governance around drinking water provision. Greater environmental health literacy (EHL) could have provided
residents with resources for protecting their personal health while navigating conflicting recommendations about
boil orders, filters, and concerns about bacteria-contaminated aerosolized water droplets. Many residents sought
resources to help decide for themselves whether their water is safe; however, few tools are specifically designed
for use by the public. Using a CBPR approach, the specific aims of this project are to: 1) characterize the factors
affecting the utility of publicly available tools for environmental monitoring for improving EHL and protecting
personal health; 2) assess how the co-development of low-cost technologies for environmental monitoring
influences EHL for community-efficacy; and 3) describe how the use of low-cost technologies for environmental
monitoring affects trust in science and scientists. We hypothesize that: co-development of low-cost technologies
for water quality monitoring will lead to increased EHL; low-cost tools for water monitoring will provide resources
that allow increased trust in some official water data sources; and low-cost tools for water monitoring will increase
community capacity for mobilizing to protect water-affected public health. My prior work using CBPR and citizen
science looking at water quality and community organizing in Detroit, the strong partnerships that I have
established in Flint over the last two years, and the guidance of internationally recognized environmental health
scholars that make up my mentoring and advisory team will ensure that the research and career development
goals of this K01 are met, will provide preliminary data for me to be highly competitive for an NIEHS R01, and
will situate me as a leader in innovative technologies for improving EHL. Training through this grant will enhance
my capacity to contribute to the co-development of new community-centered technologies through: formal and
online co...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9954079
- **Project number:** 5K01ES029115-03
- **Recipient organization:** MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Jennifer S. Carrera
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $155,497
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-07-01 → 2022-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9954079

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9954079, Engaging Community in the Development of Low-Cost Technologies for Environmental Monitoring to Promote Environmental Health Literacy in a Low-Trust Setting (5K01ES029115-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9954079. Licensed CC0.

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