)Sima Namin is a doctoral student majoring in Urban Planning and Public Policy at The University of Texas at Arlington and currently serves as a Teaching Assistant with the School of Urban and Public Affairs. Originally from Tehran, Iran, she developed a passion for human rights and community health. She holds an MA in Urban and Regional Planning from Tehran University. Her research is focused on the interrelations between community health and environmental inequalities and potentials for community development and advocacy. She is particularly interested in public policy and finding ways to channel and translate the scientific language of environmental and ecological research into something comprehensible for the public and reflect it sufficiently to decision makers.