HEALTHY CITIES
More Than Just a Map New tool visualizes environmental challenges and opportunities in the St. Louis region
Rebecca states that often this data is only visible to the organizations that have financial resources and access to ArcGIS or other mapping systems. Since this tool is publicly available, users can access the map and visualize multiple types of data to see which locations in the study area have, for example, the least amount of tree canopy, or which communities are most vulnerable to flooding. “Seeing the data can inform and prioritize the work happening on the ground,” she says. The Assessment moves beyond challenge-mapping and also includes community asset mapping to point out where there are organizations and initiatives working, and where collaborations can be built to co-create solutions. “In order to be successful, our conservation work must be intersectional,” says Rebecca. Jenny Connelly-Bowen, executive director for Community Builders Network of Metro St. Louis (CBN)
This year, The Nature Conservancy collaborated with local partners to create the St. Louis EcoUrban Assessment—a StoryMap and interactive tool that visualizes several social, economic, ecological and public health factors in the four-county study region of St. Louis County and City in Missouri, and St. Clair and Madison counties in Illinois. Informed by the findings from the Environmental Racism in St. Louis report, the Assessment includes data on air quality, asthma rates, flooding and stormwater issues, food access, tree canopy coverage, and other environmental and socioeconomic factors. “Our goals were to make the data included in the study more readily accessible and user-friendly to the public, increase awareness and visibility of local challenges to prioritize action, and drive resources to the frontline communities being impacted,” says Rebecca Weaver, TNC’s cities program manager in Missouri. Additionally, the Assessment not only lends itself to TNC’s work but can also be used by partners and other community stakeholders to build support for change.
agrees and says one of the most important features of the tool is the way it maps place-based assets like schools, faith-based institutions and community-based organizations alongside the environmental data— since these local partners are critical for creating community-driven solutions. “CBN recognizes that environmental justice issues intersect with place- based community development work on many levels,” says Jenny. “This new tool will help all of us better understand the unique challenges that each neighborhood in our region is facing, and serves as a sobering reminder that communities of color remain on the front lines of the climate crisis.”
LEARN MORE about the St. Louis EcoUrban Assessment and access the tool, go to nature.org/EcoUrbanToolSTL
4 MISSOURI : ACTION AND IMPACT
THIS PAGE Data on the St. Louis EcoUrban Assessment Tool showing schools, air quality and flood risk
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