Community-Soil-Air-Water
Our Mission
Build and implement a research model driven by the community,
with the support of community-based organizations and academic researchers,
to address metro Atlanta's environmental, climate, and social injustices.
Our Values
Transparency
Actionable
Accountability
Inclusivity
Respect
Our Vision
Communities leading research collaborations to achieve environmental and social change in a transformative way.
Our Principles
Community-led solutions
Anti-racist framework
Building trust and transparency
Bridging knowledge gaps
Shared learning experiences
Information accessibility
We at CSAW determined our mission, values, vision, and principles together; Faculty, Postbac, Master's, Community and Project Personnel Fellow worked alongside our community-based organizations, the West Atlanta Watershed Alliance (WAWA) and Environmental Community Action (Eco-Action) to voice exactly how our learning ecosystem was working to accomplish our goals.
CSAW's horizontal leadership structure means every voice matters and is taken into account when determining next steps, especially as it pertains to CSAW Projects.
Our Learning Ecosystem
Origins of CSAW
Follow along below for a timeline of our history.
In 2012, CSAW began as a research initiative housed in the Department of Geosciences with the intent to confront the most pressing set of problems facing cities of the twenty-first century: the realization of sustainable urban environments and thriving urban communities.
Today, CSAW brings together scholars and community partners in Atlanta to address environmental processes that shape and are shaped by local communities. This research initiative advances an integrated physical and social scientific approach to understanding human-environment interactions, where the ultimate goal is to facilitate thriving, resourceful communities that are better equipped to address environmental concerns. Meet our team.
Department of Geosciences students at Georgia State University conducted a study on the Socio-Environmental Context of Quarry Yards for Microsoft, ultimately culminating in the IT Corporation discontinuing building at the site.
2012
2019
The Tire Initiative to Reduce & Eliminate Dumping removed over 3,500 illegally dumped tires from rivers around Atlanta neighborhoods. Partners included ECO-Action, Trees Atlanta, the Proctor Creek Stewardship Council, and Charis Community Housing.
In conjuction with South River Watershed Alliance, Dr. Sarah H. Ledford's Urban Hydrology Lab began quantifying metrics on the Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria across the South River, providing consistent and reliable data for over 25 sites. These efforts reaming a critical part of CSAW's ecosystem, and are ongoing. See the data we've collected here.
Watershed Monitoring
T. I. R. E. D.
Addressed social and environmental disparities through community geography and geographic information systems (GIS).
REU Site Grant
2013
AGREC
2020
With support from the Atlanta Global Research and Education Collaborative (AGREC), the Urban Hydrology Lab, alongside Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, American Rivers, and the West Atlanta Watershed Alliance grew and streamlined the water monitoring network, ultimately leading to the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarding CSAW with a $7.2 million grant.
2021
Quarry Yards Study
CSAW received a NSF grant (award no. 2228192) to develop a more comprehensive learning ecosystem, with faculty, students, postbacs, housed across multiple universities and community-based organizations (CBOs). The ecosystem sets out to build a framework for building equitable partnerships with CBOs; train, professionally develop, and guide Master's students in the field of Geosciences; and prioritize transparency in research and data sharing with communities at home at beyond. Meet our team here.
But our work doesn't stop here. We're constantly looking for better methods, enriching partnerships, and thoughtful individuals who believe in equitable change. Apply to join the Fall 2025 Graduate Fellow Cohort or
get in touch with us for further inquiries or ideas.
Today
CSAW received a NSF grant (award no. 2228192) to develop a more comprehensive ecosystem, with faculty, students, and postbacs housed across multiple universities and community-based organizations (CBOs). The ecosystem sets out to form a framework for building equitable partnerships with CBOs; train, professionally develop and guide Master's students in the field of Geosciences, and prioritize transparency and for our communities at home and beyond.