Allison Puglisi received an honorable mention from the American Studies Association for her dissertation, “Redefining Residency: Black Environmental Thought in New Orleans, 1929-1998” (Harvard University). The Ralph Henry Gabriel Prize is awarded annually, by the American Studies Association, to the best doctoral dissertation in American studies, ethnic studies, or women's studies.

“Redefining Residency: Black Environmental Thought in New Orleans, 1929-1998” explores how housing activist—particularly Black women—laid the groundwork for Black environmental thought and organizing in the twentieth century. Using oral histories, news coverage, and activists’ own writings, the project works to reinterpret the modern environmental justice movement.