Potholes and Sociopolitical Possibilities: Deepening Environmental Education for Black Children Living and Learning in the City.

This article examines how urban environmental education (EE) often overlooks the sociopolitical knowledge and everyday expertise of city-dwelling Black children, focusing on their place-based understandings of air, land, and water. Drawing on an 18-month ethnographic study of fourth- and fifth-grade Black students in a mid-size Midwestern city, the research reveals that these children articulate complex, interdisciplinary perspectives that blend scientific, political, and ethical dimensions, including awareness of environmental racism, infrastructure neglect, and governmental accountability. The findings suggest that normative EE frameworks inadequately address the lived realities of Black urban youth and call for pedagogical approaches that center their experiences to foster justice-oriented and culturally relevant environmental learning. This study contributes empirical insights toward reimagining EE to support Black children's holistic wellness, agency, and self-determined place-making in urban contexts.