Social Environment
Research + Consulting
Intersecting systems thinking, human behaviour, and spatial design through evidence-based research practice.
Health & Food Environments
Denver city planners and public health organizations needed to understand why food access interventions (like opening new grocery stores in underserved areas) weren’t consistently improving health outcomes…read more.
Green Space & Health
Urban planners, landscape designers, and public health agencies increasingly recognize that urban green spaces (UGS) can promote human health. However, despite mounting evidence of health benefits, cities struggle to systematically use green spaces as a public health solution…read more.
Transforming Community Engagement
Planning departments and community organizations struggle with traditional community engagement approaches that often fail to capture authentic input from diverse residents…read more.
Let’s fill the knowledge gaps
How can we collaborate? I specialize in…
+ Helping development firms anticipate how diverse communities will actually use designed spaces
+ Providing landscape and planning firms with research-backed methodologies to navigate complex stakeholder landscapes
+ Helping development teams differentiate their proposals by demonstrating measurable community health and social equity outcomes
+ Bridging the gap between academic research and development practice
Expertise
1
Community
Focus Group Discussions, Interviews & Surveys, Pop-ups & Workshops
2
Built Environment
Walkability, Nutrition & physical activity, GIS Feasibility studies
3
Food Systems & Sustainability
Community food security, Life-cycle Assessment (LCA), Translation of SDGs
4
Health & Behaviour
Social determinants of health (SDOH), Social Network Analysis, Aging-in-Place
Services
Research & Planning
+ Mixed-methods research design and implementation: qualitative, quantitative, spatial
+ Program and policy evaluation; Policy recommendation development
+ Public space and food systems planning; Social network and community resource analysis
Technical Writing
+ Grant/scientific writing, Project management, IRB applications
+ Literature reviews, Manuscript writing for peer review journal publication, White papers
+ Conference presentations/public speaking
Public Engagement
+ Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR): Diverse stakeholders, methods, and contexts
+ Communication of complex data synthesis, translation, and visualization for diverse audiences
GIS Mapping
+ Spatial and landscape analysis: GIS, Geodesign, and Participatory Mapping (PGIS)
+ Geo-naratives and Storymaps
Evidence-base
+ Human-Environment systems thinking; evidence-based design and planning
+ Complex data synthesis, translation, and visualization for diverse audiences
+ Health equity and built environment assessment
Outrearch/Training
+ Participatory design facilitation and training; Research team leadership and coordination
+ Content adaptation: Translating technical research for academic, professional, and public audiences
Jessica A. Shea, PhD 