Where on Earth Are the Earth Sciences? A Mixed-Methods Study of Environmental Justice Research Trends and Roadblocks to Engagement.

Environmental justice (EJ) research relies on expertise from multiple disciplines to address community-specific health risks and inequities. EJ is an inherently transdisciplinary framework, yet the expansion of EJ scholarship has not occurred evenly across academic disciplines. Understanding disciplinary contributions is essential for identifying gaps in knowledge and practice. This research employed a mixed-method approach to investigate EJ research trends and roadblocks to engagement. Study 1 used a bibliometric analysis of Scopus-indexed publications and found that Environmental science and Social sciences were the leading contributors to EJ scholarship. Earth sciences ranked only seventh in EJ research volume by proportion and exhibited comparatively stagnant growth. Study 2 investigated this discrepancy through a survey of Earth scientists (N = 460) examining perceived barriers to EJ engagement. Results indicated that career stage was a significant predictor of EJ familiarity and community involvement: early-career Earth scientists were more familiar with EJ but were less involved in their communities' environmental issues than their late-career counterparts. Race and ethnicity were also associated with differences in perceived funding difficulty, with White respondents reporting fewer challenges in securing support for EJ-related projects. Taken together, these studies assess EJ engagement within the Earth sciences and identify structural and experiential factors that may limit participation. Identifying disciplinary gaps and roadblocks helps integrate Earth sciences into EJ scholarship and increase research on environmental health and equity.