In Appalachia, the history, use, and ownership of land is central to achieving a just transition from an extraction-based economy to one that ensures that Appalachian communities can thrive. Working closely with faculty with long-standing ties to the community, and beginning our land justice work in Tennessee’s Clearfork Valley, we are working with communities to explore foundational questions.
We ask:
How might former coal mine sites be reclaimed in a way that supports both the environment and the economic needs of communities in the region?
How might university resources be leveraged to support communities as they envision novel ecological restoration, reforestation, and soil remediation on formerly mined lands as well as alternative regulatory frameworks for post-mine land governance?
What legal structures might enable communities to ensure that the revenue from current and future investment is devoted to enhancing the economic wellbeing of communities in Appalachia and the Mountain South?
How can university resources be leveraged to ensure that local governments have sufficient property record management infrastructure to ensure that land can be used to benefit community and resident needs?
Stay tuned for future opportunities in Land Justice in the AJRL!
Affiliated faculty of the AJRC are committed to building relationships with community organizations in the Clearfork Valley of Tennessee. Collaborative research projects and future lab scenarios are in-progress that support methods of envisioning and empowerment for rural communities in Appalachia. Professor Scottie McDaniel (School of Landscape Architecture) is currently running a design studio with master of landscape architecture students to propose alternative methods and radical interventions situated in the socio-ecological context of the Valley. Professor Gabe Schwartzman (Geography & Sustainability) is continuing his involvement with the Tennessee Appalachian Community Economies (TNACE) coalition in connection to his research in energy transition landscapes.
Community Partners
Statewide Organizing for Community eMpowerment (SOCM) is a 50-year-old, member-driven organization dedicated to empowering Tennesseans in their efforts to have a greater voice in determining their own future. SOCM accomplishes this by training local leaders and by developing and sustaining long-term, democratically run, and locally rooted membership organizations in communities throughout Tennessee. Together, SOCM members work towards a Tennessee where all people are treated with dignity, where the environment is preserved and protected, and where corporations and public officials are held accountable to the needs of the people.
Woodland Community Land Trust operates in an impoverished Appalachian community in northeastern Tennessee, where access to land and political and economic power has been tightly controlled by a few major extractive companies. For almost forty years, Woodland and its sister organizations, Woodland Community Development Corporation and Clearfork Community Institute, have acquired 450 acres of land and become involved in housing construction, permaculture, small business development, and education, attempting to accumulate sufficient land and skills to build a sustainable community.
Southern Connected Communities Project aims to build community controlled broadband infrastructure to deliver coverage initially to communities throughout East Tennessee and Central Appalachia with the ultimate aim of creating a replicable model for community-controlled broadband projects. SCCP aims to play a major role in helping communities they are in deep relationship with design, develop, establish, and maintain their projects and then link them into a cooperative and thriving network that delivers affordable, accessible, and principled broadband throughout Appalachia, the South, and beyond.
Affiliated Faculty
Affiliated faculty of the AJRC are committed to building relationships with community organizations in the Clearfork Valley of Tennessee. Collaborative research projects and future lab scenarios are in-progress that support methods of envisioning and empowerment for rural communities in Appalachia. Professor Scottie McDaniel (School of Landscape Architecture) is currently running a design studio with master of landscape architecture students to propose alternative methods and radical interventions situated in the socio-ecological context of the Valley. Professor Gabe Schwartzman (Geography & Sustainability) is continuing his involvement with the Tennessee Appalachian Community Economies (TNACE) coalition in connection to his research in energy transition landscapes.
Christina Ergas
Associate Professor, Department of Sociology
College of Arts & Sciences
Scottie McDaniel
Assistant Professor, School of Landscape Architecture
College of Architecture and Design
Gabe Schwartzman
Assistant Professor, Department of Geography & Sustainability
College of Arts and Sciences
Lindsay Shade
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology
College of Arts & Sciences