The theory of environmental inequality formation studies the fractures within places along multiple interdependent dimensions:  access to opportunity, unequal distribution of environmental effects, and meaningful access to decision-making.  Environmental justice is the process to correct these disparities. Shifting policy-making towards more inclusionary and democratic practices is a key step in this process. This type of procedural justice has been identified as a prerequisite to redressing distributional injustices.  We review the efficacy of different participatory action practices employed to improve procedural and distributional justice in uneven and contested socio-environmental landscapes.  The purpose of this research is to explore the extent to which meaningful community engagement and action can lead to better evidence-based research and policy-making.  This analysis will inform a case study in the Duwamish Valley area of Seattle, a community struggling with persistent and pervasive disparities that set this community apart from other portions of the prospering region.  Our research will build upon the growing literature addressing participatory action practices, with a specific focus on civic cartography and volunteered geographic information techniques to leverage the voice and experience of disadvantaged populations.  The resulting outcomes from this research will contribute to the understanding of how accessible information, communication and meaningful inclusion of communities in research and policy-making can help to heal our fractured places.