Six Ways Social Workers Can Incorporate Environmental Justice into Everyday Practice

Environmental justice is often viewed as a policy issue, community advocacy issue, or public health concern. While these perspectives are important, environmental justice is also highly relevant to direct social work practice.

Every day, social workers encounter clients whose health and well-being may be influenced by housing conditions, environmental exposures, neighborhood resources, and broader social determinants of health. Yet environmental factors are often underrecognized within mental health assessment and treatment planning.

The good news is that social workers do not need specialized environmental health training to begin incorporating environmental justice principles into practice.

Small changes in assessment, advocacy, and interdisciplinary collaboration can help clinicians develop a more holistic understanding of client experiences while promoting more equitable care.

Here are six practical ways social workers can integrate environmental justice into everyday practice.

1. Ask About Housing Conditions During Assessment

Social workers routinely assess biological, psychological, social, cultural, and economic factors. However, housing quality is often overlooked despite being a significant determinant of health.

Consider incorporating questions such as:

• Do you feel safe and comfortable in your home?

• Have you experienced water damage, flooding, or persistent moisture?

• Are there concerns about mold, air quality, or environmental exposures?

• Has your housing situation contributed to stress or anxiety?

• Has your living environment contributed to depression or mood instability?

These conversations may uncover environmental stressors that affect physical and psychological health as well as overall quality of life.

A more complete mental health assessment begins with a better understanding of the environment in which our clients live.

2. Recognize Environmental Stressors as Potential Contributors to Distress

Mental health symptoms do not occur in isolation.

When clients report experiencing anxiety, depression, sleep difficulties, irritability, chronic stress, or cognitive concerns, it might be helpful to explore if environmental factors could be contributing to their symptoms.

Environmental stressors can include:

• Unsafe housing conditions

• Environmental contamination

• Poor indoor air quality

Environmental factors may not be the only cause of client distress, but they can significantly influence overall well-being and should be considered within a holistic assessment framework.

3. Apply a Person-in-Environment Lens

The person-in-environment perspective is a foundational principle of social work practice.

Environmental justice strengthens this perspective by encouraging clinicians to examine how physical environments interact with social systems, economic conditions, and health outcomes.

Rather than focusing exclusively on individual symptoms, practitioners can ask:

• What environmental conditions may be affecting this client?

• What barriers exist to this client accessing safe housing?

• How do community conditions influence this client’s health and well-being?

This broader perspective supports a more comprehensive understanding of our clients and their lived experiences.

4. Collaborate With Community and Interdisciplinary Partners

Social workers are not expected to address environmental concerns alone.

Many environmental and housing-related issues require collaboration with professionals and organizations outside traditional mental health settings.

Potential partners may include:

• Housing agencies

• Environmental health professionals

• Public health departments

• Community advocacy organizations

• Legal aid services

• Disability resource programs

• Community health workers

Interdisciplinary collaboration can help connect clients with resources while strengthening community responses to environmental health concerns.

5. Advocate for Environmental Equity

Advocacy has always been a core component of social work practice.

Environmental justice calls on social workers to recognize and address the inequities that contribute to unsafe living conditions and health disparities.

Advocacy may occur at multiple levels:

Micro Level

Supporting individual clients in accessing resources and services.

Mezzo Level

Participating in community education and organizational initiatives.

Macro Level

Advocating for policies that promote healthy housing, environmental protections, and equitable access to resources.

Even small advocacy efforts can contribute to meaningful change.

6. Expand Professional Knowledge About Environmental Justice

Environmental justice is an emerging area of interest within social work, mental health, public health, and healthcare.

Developing awareness of environmental determinants of health can strengthen clinical assessment, enhance cultural humility, and support more equitable practice.

Professionals can expand their knowledge by:

• Reading environmental justice literature

• Exploring housing and health research

• Attending interdisciplinary trainings

• Learning about local environmental issues

• Engaging with community organizations

• Utilizing online educational resources such as the Environmental Justice-Informed Mental Health Practice Framework (EJ-MHPF)

Increasing awareness is often the first step toward meaningful change.

Environmental Justice Is Social Work Practice

Environmental justice is not separate from social work—it is deeply connected to the profession's commitment to social justice, person-in-environment practice, and advocacy for vulnerable populations.

Where people live affects how they live.

Housing quality and environmental exposures can influence health and well-being. When these factors are overlooked, important contributors to client experiences may remain unrecognized.

By asking a few additional questions, expanding assessment practices, collaborating with community partners, and advocating for healthier environments, social workers can help address environmental inequities while supporting more holistic and equitable care.

Environmental justice is not only a public health issue or policy concern.

It is a social work issue.

And it belongs in everyday clinical practice.

References:

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Dyer, J., & Gushwa, M. (2023). Going DEIPAR deeper: Developing and incorporating a social justice curricular framework [manuscript submitted for publication]. DSW Program, Simmons University.

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National Association of Social Workers. (2021). Code of ethics of the National Association of  Social Workers. https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English

Reuben, A., Manczak, E. M., Cabrera, L. Y., Alegría, M., Bucher, M., Freeman, E. C., Miller, G. W., Solomon, G. M., & Perry, M. J. (2022). The interplay of environmental exposures and mental health: Setting an agenda. Environmental Health Perspectives, 130(2),  025001. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP9889

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