Research
Objectives
The Community Health Impact Projects (CHIP) investigate how place, work, food systems, environmental exposures, and social conditions intersect to shape chronic disease risk in the U.S.–Mexico border region. Our objectives are to generate actionable evidence across three connected pillars: Cardiometabolic & Chronic Disease; Environmental & Occupational Health; and Food Systems & Nutrition. Across these areas, CHIP integrates community-based health screenings, environmental monitoring, spatial epidemiology, biomarker analysis, mixed-methods evaluation, and community-engaged research.
Our work is designed to identify population vulnerability, characterize place-based risk, evaluate real-world programs, and translate findings into practical tools for partners, policymakers, and communities. We emphasize bilingual, collaborative, and translational science that links academic research with public health practice. By centering the lived realities of El Paso and the Paso del Norte region, CHIP advances data-informed strategies that support prevention, healthier environments, stronger food systems, and more resilient communities.
Projects
Integrated Research Themes
CHIP studies how environmental exposures, work, food systems, health behaviors, and structural conditions intersect to shape chronic disease risk in border communities. Our work connects community-based health screenings, environmental monitoring, spatial epidemiology, biomarker analysis, implementation science, and program evaluation. This integrated model allows us to move from documenting risk to building practical tools that support prevention, community decision-making, and healthier systems.
CHIP-NEEDS: Environmental Health Risk Assessment and Community-Engaged Exposure
CHIP-NEEDS focuses on assessing environmental health risks and community concerns in neighborhoods adjacent to the Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) Port of Entry and the nearby refinery in El Paso. Through a community-engaged approach, the project involves residents in identifying environmental concerns, shaping data collection tools, and interpreting findings. CHIP-NEEDS combines qualitative methods, including structured interviews and participatory workshops, with environmental sampling of air, soil, and water to document exposure risks in historically underserved areas disproportionately affected by industrial and cross-border activity. The project integrates exposure and community data with geospatial mapping and public health indicators to visualize cumulative risk and identify vulnerable populations. It uses frameworks to prioritize community voice in the interpretation of findings and development of recommendations.
CHIP-EVAL: Mixed-Methods Evaluations of Nutrition and Wellness programs
CHIP-EVAL leads public health evaluations that promote continuous improvement across school and community settings. The CHIP team applies mixed-methods strategies—including health markers, focus groups, implementation tracking, and force field analysis—to assess reach, effectiveness, fidelity, and sustainability. Evaluations are tailored in close collaboration with partners to support data-informed decision-making and long-term program success. GUSNIP: Evaluation of produce prescription and nutrition incentive programs supporting healthy food access among SNAP participants, with a focus on behavior change, reach, and clinic-retail integration. EPISD–DoDEA: Implementation and outcome evaluation of school wellness and physical activity programming for military-connected students in El Paso schools. TASTERSPACE: Evaluation of a hands-on nutrition education program that sparks food curiosity and healthy habits in children ages 5–11 through fun, family-centered exploration.
CHIP-NUTRITION: Education and School Meal Research to Support Healthy Eating
CHIP-NUTRITION investigates how culture, perception, and communication influence food choices in Latino families, with a focus on nutrition education and school meal engagement. The project centers on evaluating pork acceptance in a predominantly Latino elementary school in El Paso. Through bilingual, culturally tailored materials and interactive programming, CHIP-NUTRITION explores how children and caregivers respond to messaging about protein quality, food safety, sustainability, and healthfulness. The project also examines cafeteria behavior and meal selection patterns to assess the impact of education strategies on real-world food choices. Informed by community input, CHIP-NUTRITION integrates qualitative research, observational data, and environmental assessments to understand barriers and opportunities for promoting healthy eating in schools. The goal is to co-develop nutrition communication tools that are engaging, accessible, and culturally meaningful.
CHIP-GIS Mapping Environmental Exposure and Health Risk in Communities
CHIP-GIS is a geospatial research initiative that investigates how environmental exposures shape chronic disease patterns in structurally underserved communities. By integrating air quality monitoring, spatial epidemiology, and health records, CHIP-GIS builds place-based tools that inform community advocacy and evidence-driven policy. In Houston, we focus on environmental health disparities faced by Latino day laborers who work in high-risk outdoor settings. This project maps informal hiring sites across the city and overlays data on traffic-related air pollution, ground-level ozone, and urban heat island exposure. This work supports community-engaged strategies to reduce occupational exposures and improve resilience. In El Paso, we are using de-identified electronic health records to examine spatial trends in asthma and other respiratory illnesses across the region. By pairing ICD-10-coded health data with air pollution estimates, we are identifying neighborhood-level health burdens.
