"Working Deeply With the Community": Nurse-Community Partnership Processes for Climate Justice

To explore how public health nurses (PHNs) and community-based organizations (CBOs) collaborate to advance climate justice, including their partnership processes, perceived facilitators and barriers, and the values that shape their relational work.

A qualitative descriptive study using photovoice and semi-structured interviews, analyzed through reflexive thematic analysis.

Eight PHNs and five CBO representatives from six US states participated, forming five PHN-CBO dyads and three solo PHNs.

Data were collected from August 2022 to February 2023. Participants took photographs to guide discussion during joint photovoice sessions and participated in individual semi-structured interviews. Transcripts were coded deductively, using the Authentic Partnerships Model, and inductively to identify emergent themes.

Participants described partnership processes that were grounded in trust, care, and a shared purpose. They emphasized the importance of power-sharing, capacity building, and mutual respect in sustaining long-term collaboration. Geographic distance and institutional constraints emerged as barriers to advocacy and connection. Personal values, community ties, and a desire for relational accountability in climate justice work shaped pathways into partnership.

Findings expand current models of partnership and suggest that PHNs play a critical role in advancing climate justice through reflective, values-driven collaboration with communities.