Samina Raja

Assistant Professor

office : 201D Hayes Hall
phone : 716.829.2133 ext 225
e-mail : sraja@buffalo.edu

Education

B.Sc. (civil engineering), College of Engineering and Technology, Jamia Millia University, New Delhi
M. Planning (housing), School of Architecture and Planning, New Delhi
Ph.D. (urban and regional planning), University of Wisconsin-Madison

Courses

Dr. Raja teaches a combination of required and elective courses in the graduate MUP program. Currently, Dr. Raja teaches Research Methods, the first of a two-course required methods sequence. In the spring semester, Dr. Raja teaches Planning Methods, the second required course in the methods sequence, as well as Comparative International Planning and Development, a graduate seminar that introduces students to the theory and practice of development planning in developing countries, particularly in South Asia.

Research

Dr. Raja’s research focuses on planning and design for healthy communities and the fiscal dimensions of planning. Her research on healthy communities examines the influence of the food and built environments on obesity and physical activity.  Given the interdisciplinary nature of this topic, Dr. Raja collaborates with colleagues from UB’s School of Medicine and the School of Public Health and Health Professions.  An ongoing multi-year study, conducted in collaboration with the School of Medicine, examines the effect of the built environment on obesity among youth, and has received over a million dollars in funding from the National Institute of Health.

Dr. Raja’s interests in fiscal dimensions of planning pertain to the methods planners use for measuring the fiscal impacts of land development. She is currently working, as a part of a national team, to develop a framework for evaluating traditional methods of fiscal impact analysis.  This project is funded by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Dr. Raja has also worked internationally.  Her international interests pertain to the role of planning in communities experiencing conflict; her geographic area of expertise is the region of Kashmir in South Asia.

Public service

Dr. Raja's service to the community and the planning profession is linked to her research interests. As an active member of the national American Planning Association (APA), she works to bring the importance of community and regional food planning to the attention of practicing planners nationwide.  As part of a recent effort funded by the Healthy Eating by Design program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, she is leading a nationwide survey of APA members to discern their opinion of and role of planners in community and regional food planning.  Other partners in this project include APA’s Food Systems Steering Committee, the University at Washington, and the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc.  She also applies her research to address local and regional concerns. For example, Dr. Raja collaborates with the Massachusetts Avenue Project (MAP) to plan, implement, and evaluate strategies and programs to strengthen local sustainable food systems in the City of Buffalo. She is currently evaluating the effectiveness of a mobile market project, operated by MAP, to bring healthful, affordable produce to ‘food desert’ neighborhoods in Buffalo.

Selected publications

  • “The Food Environment or the Built Environment: What Accounts for a Greater Influence on Obesity?” (with Li Yin, James Roemmich, Changxing Ma, Leonard Epstein, and Pavan Yadav)  In review.  Journal of the American Planning Association.
  • “Beyond Food Deserts: Measuring and Mapping Racial Disparities in Neighborhood Food Environments” (with Changxing Ma and Pavan Yadav. Forthcoming. Journal of Planning Education and Research.
  •  “The Critical Connection between Community Food Systems and Urban Planning” (with M. Caton Campbell) Under revision. Journal of Planning Literature.
  •  “Association of Access to Parks and Recreational Facilities with the Physical Activity of Young Children” (with J. Roemmich, L. Epstein, L. Yin, J. Robinson, D. Winiewicz) 2006. Preventive Medicine, Vol 43, No.6, 437-441.
  • “Built Environment: Disparate effects on physical activity and sedentary behaviors in youth”  (with J. Roemmich, L. Epstein, and L. Yin)  2006. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, Vol 33, No.1: 29-38.
  •  “Reducing sedentary behavior: The relationship between park area and youth physical activity” (With L. Epstein, S. Gold, R. Paluch, and J. Roemmich) 2006. Psychological Science, Vol 17, No. 8: 654-659.
  • “Kashmir” (2006) In Murer and Reveron (eds.) Flashpoints in the War on Terrorism: Understanding the Hot Spots that Stoke the Fire.  New York, NY: Routledge.
  • “Seeking common ground in smart growth and food system planning: Lessons from the ‘Food for Growth' studio” in Teaching Smart Growth at Colleges and Universities: A Set of Model Course Prospectuses.  (2006) US Environmental Planning Agency.
  • “Purchases of Food in Youth: Influence of Price and Income” (With L. Epstein, E. Handley, K. Dearing, D. Cho, R. Paluch, J. Roemmich, Y. Pak and B. Spring) (2006) Psychological Science. Vol 17 (1): 82-89.
  • “Site-Value Taxation” (2005) In Roger Caves (ed.) Encyclopedia of the City. London, UK: Routledge.
  • “What's Eating You About What You Eat? Results From a Survey of Madison Area Residents Regarding Their Likes and Concerns About the Local Food System” (with M. Stevens) (2001) Madison Food System Working Paper Series Number 5.  Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin-Madison.
  • “Preserving Community Gardens in a Growing Community: A Report on the Community Gardens Planning Process in Madison, Wisconsin” (2000) Madison Food System Working Paper Series Number 4. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Selected activities, honors, awards

Dr. Raja is the principal or co-investigator on several studies that test the effect of the built and food environments on health (particularly physical activity and obesity).  Her research is funded by the National Institute of Health (built environment and obesity), the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (park access and obesity), the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (fiscal impacts of development), and the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc (workplace design and health).

In 2005, under Dr. Raja's direction, the ‘Food for Growth' graduate studio won a national award from the American Association of Certified Planners (AICP).

In 2004, Dr. Raja represented the Institute of Objective Studies (New Delhi) at the 48th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.