{"id":1292,"date":"2021-11-02T11:03:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-02T18:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/professor-brings-academic-research-to-life-in-l-a-s-underserved-communities\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T20:10:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T03:10:55","slug":"academic-research-to-underserved-communities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/academic-research-to-underserved-communities\/","title":{"rendered":"Professor brings academic research to life in L.A.\u2019s underserved communities"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                                    \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/04\/story-3573-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/04\/story-3573-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"Professor brings academic research to life in L.A.\u2019s underserved communities\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  John Wilson works with USC Dornsife\u2019s Public Exchange to address food insecurity and extreme heat in L.A.\u2019s underserved neighborhoods. (Photo: Courtesy of USC School of Architecture.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=faculty\">Faculty<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>Professor brings academic research to life in L.A.\u2019s underserved communities<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  John Wilson is working to improve the well-being of Angelenos through two USC Dornsife Public Exchange projects. <strong>[5 min read]<\/strong>\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Meredith McGroarty<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">November 2, 2021<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 2.26076008c-1.08745421 1.058837-1.68841575 2.518315-1.68841575 4.0350275 0 1.5167124.60096154 2.9475732 1.68841575 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xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m8.14285714 9.42857143c-.17142857 0-.34285714 0-.51428571.08571428l7.28571427 6.34285719c.3428572.2571428.6857143.2571428.9428572 0l7.2857142-6.34285719c-.0857142-.08571428-.2571428-.08571428-.4285714-.08571428zm-1.28571428 1.11428567v.1714286 8.5714286c0 .6857143.6 1.2857143 1.28571428 1.2857143h14.57142856c.6857143 0 1.2857143-.6 1.2857143-1.2857143v-8.5714286c0-.0857143 0-.0857143 0-.1714286l-7.2 6.3428572c-.7714286.6857143-1.8857143.6857143-2.6571429 0z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -9)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <h2>In brief:<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>USC Dornsife\u2019s John Wilson is working on a project that advises the city of Los Angeles on how it can strategically plant trees to cool neighborhoods.<\/li>\n<li>He is also working on an initiative to ensure Angelenos have enough to eat.<\/li>\n<li>Wilson says USC Dornsife\u2019s Public Exchange can help him \u201cmake a difference in the world.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Among the many public health issues faced by low-income communities in Los Angeles, two loom large: heat and food insecurity. But solving these problems is more complex than simply planting a lot of trees and opening a few supermarkets in underserved neighborhoods, says <a href=\"https:\/\/spatial.usc.edu\/?team=john-p-wilson\">John Wilson<\/a>, professor of sociology, architecture, civil and environmental engineering, computer science, preventive medicine, and spatial sciences at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.<\/p>\n<p>Initiatives that fail to take into account a community\u2019s dynamics \u2014 for example, how people use outdoor space, or how they choose which food stores or restaurants to patronize \u2014 will change nothing at best and be disruptive at worst, he adds.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn order to know what the city could become we have to engage the citizens, because I don&#8217;t think we live in an age now where a few smart people can just tell everybody what&#8217;s good for them,\u201d says Wilson, who is founding director of USC Dornsife\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/spatial.usc.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Spatial Sciences Institute<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Wilson is part of two projects \u2014 the USC <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/3461\/public-exchange-plan-to-double-eastside-shade\/\">Urban Trees Initiative<\/a> and a program focused on <a href=\"https:\/\/publicexchange.usc.edu\/food-insecurity-in-la-county\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">fighting food insecurity<\/a> \u2014 at USC Dornsife\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/publicexchange.usc.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Public Exchange<\/a>. Public Exchange is a new office within the College that connects a wide range of academic researchers with policy, industry and nonprofit partners that need academic expertise to tackle complex challenges, including transportation, sustainability and public health.<\/p>\n<p>Being able to interact with the people affected by these issues and see the results of his research in everyday life motivated Wilson to work with Public Exchange.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHaving wide community engagement gives you the chance that your work could be fast tracked to change policy and help people make decisions, as opposed to writing a paper and hoping somebody reads it one day so that it might make a difference in the world,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<h2>Fighting the heat<\/h2>\n<p>While average annual temperatures in L.A. County have risen over the past century, extreme heat is becoming an even greater problem. A 2015 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/local\/california\/la-me-extreme-heat-20150514-htmlstory.html\">study<\/a> found that the number of days per year that temperatures exceed 95 degrees Fahrenheit in downtown L.A. could rise to 22 days by 2050 (compared with six days in 2000). Wilson adds that some communities on L.A.\u2019s Eastside, where there are fewer trees, might experience 50 or 60 of these very hot days per year within a few decades.<\/p>\n<p>Shade cover can reduce heat by up to 50%, making trees a natural way to protect people from high temperatures. Through the USC Urban Trees Initiative, faculty and students from the university are determining where and what kinds of trees the city of L.A., nonprofits and local community members should plant in several Eastside L.A. neighborhoods as well as near USC\u2019s main campus.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you want to have a sustainable urban forest, a solution would not be to cover Los Angeles with trees tomorrow because you\u2019d have trees for 60 years, and then they\u2019d all die,\u201d he says. \u201cWe need to plant more trees over many decades and eventually plant trees to offset tree mortality in order to build a vibrant and sustainable urban forest.\u201d \u00a0Wilson adds that researchers also have to consider factors like which types of trees mitigate air pollution well and which types provide optimal shade cover.<\/p>\n<h2>Eating behaviors<\/h2>\n<p>Wilson\u2019s other Public Exchange project centers on food insecurity in L.A., with the goal of helping the county raise awareness about financial and food assistance resources for residents in need. A <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/3558\/food-insecurity-los-angeles\/\">recent report<\/a> by the project found that the number of L.A. County people facing food insecurity had dropped substantially from the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic but still affected one in 10 households.<\/p>\n<p>The food insecurity project recently won a $2 million grant from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nsf.org\/\">National Science Foundation<\/a>, which Wilson says will help fund the creation of a data portal, similar to the one Johns Hopkins created for COVID-19, in which people can map out the \u201cfood ecosystem\u201d in their area, including food assistance outlets, small shops, restaurants, bars and supermarkets.<\/p>\n<p>Like many Public Exchange projects, the one on food insecurity involves experts from more than one school. It\u2019s a reflection of Public Exchange\u2019s mandate to assemble multidisciplinary teams that can address problems from multiple angles. The Urban Trees Initiative, for example, includes\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/arch.usc.edu\/people\/esther-margulies\">Esther Margulies<\/a>\u00a0from the USC School of Architecture, and the food insecurity project is led by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/faculty-search\/kayla-de-la-haye\/\">Kayla de la Haye<\/a>\u00a0at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.<\/p>\n<p>The food insecurity project is also meant to foster healthy eating behaviors and inform people of their food shopping options. But the relationship between people and their diet is complex, Wilson says. People might think simply opening a supermarket in an underserved area will improve the eating habits of people in that neighborhood, but it\u2019s not that simple.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not clear from the science that you get the desired results if you just plunk a supermarket in the middle of a neighborhood that doesn\u2019t have one. There\u2019s probably some mom-and-pop stores there now, for example, so what happens to them?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n<p>Developing community gardens or expanding healthy food options at smaller local stores are possible strategies, he adds. As part of the project, a graduate student will be working with community members to see which options work best for the people there.<\/p>\n<p>Wilson says he\u2019s fortunate to have found a team of faculty, staff and students able to make these community-centered projects happen, and he hopes to see the outcomes in the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLife is short, and I would like to make a difference in the world. What Public Exchange helps me do is to elevate the chances that I might be able to do that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/shade-la-winning-design-giving-shade-for-metro-during-world-cup\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Student-designed shade structure debuts at Metro station ahead of World Cup 2026<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/usc-dornsife-public-exchange-welcomes-climate-leader-with-deep-la-policy-experience\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >USC Dornsife Public Exchange welcomes climate leader with deep LA policy experience<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Food insecurity remains high in L.A. County, but who it affects is changing<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n            <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>John Wilson is working to improve the well-being of Angelenos through two USC Dornsife Public Exchange projects. <strong>[5 min read]<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":1295,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,24,15],"tags":[66,143,49,236,80,131],"class_list":["post-1292","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faculty","category-social-impact","category-sustainability","tag-climate-change","tag-faculty","tag-food-insecurity","tag-john-wilson","tag-public-exchange","tag-spatial-sciences"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - 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