YCCCH to host inaugural Connecticut Symposium on Climate Change and Health
On March 6, 2024, the Yale Center on Climate Change and Health will host the inaugural “Connecticut Symposium on Climate Change and Health: Preparing for a healthy Connecticut in the face of climate change.” Join this virtual event, organized in collaboration with the Office of Climate and Health at the Connecticut Department of Public Health, to learn about how Connecticut is rising to the challenge of climate-related health risks, and how you can get involved.
Dr. Jodi Sherman comments on relationship between climate change and health care quality and safety
Dr. Jodi Sherman, Director of YCCCH’s Program on Health Care Environmental Sustainability, and colleagues at the American Institutes for Research recently published a perspective essay in the Patient Safety Network. The perspective essay, with corresponding interview with Dr. Sherman, discusses the implications of climate change on human health and the delivery of health care services, how health care contributes to climate change, and how government and the health care sector can address both while improving patient safety.
Recent studies suggest mosquito-borne disease outbreaks may become more likely in U.S.
Pointing to alarming evidence of the potential for a resurgence of yellow fever in the United States, a recent Yale Politic article explores the ramifications of climate change on the expansion and spread of mosquito-borne diseases within the United States and broader implications for global public health systems. Dr. Robert Dubrow, Faculty Director at the Yale Center on Climate Change and Health, comments in the article, “We’re not helpless in the face of climate change. But we have to work even harder than we would if there were no climate change in order to control vector-borne diseases.”
Dr. Kai Chen publishes international study on ozone-related mortality
Dr. Kai Chen, Deputy Faculty Director and Director of Research at the Yale Center on Climate Change and Health, in collaboration with colleagues from the Multi-Country Multi-City Collaborative Research Network at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, spearheaded an international study on ozone-related deaths. Their findings indicate a projected rise in global mortality attributed to ozone over the next two decades unless climate and air quality regulations are strengthened. This study’s projections are based on extensive analysis of the association between short-term exposure to ground-level ozone and daily mortality across 406 cities spanning North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa.
Learn more about the study in this article, and access the full research publication in the One Earth journal article below.
Study shows emissions from Canadian oil sands higher than previously reported
Dr. Drew Gentner, Associate Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the School of Engineering & Applied Science and YCCCH Affiliated Faculty, co-led a research study aimed at quantifying organic pollutants generated by oil sand facilities in Alberta, Canada. The study’s findings indicated that emissions, including reactive gases as well as intermediate- and semi-volatile organic compounds, are 20 to 64 times higher than previously recorded estimates. This study underscores the potential gaps in government-mandated air quality monitoring, which overlooks numerous reactive carbon emissions due to chemical complexity, and highlights the need for more routine carbon measurements.
Learn more about the study in this article, and read the Science journal article below.
Ways and Means Committee Democrats release documents analyzing health care sector’s role in addressing climate crisis
In December 2023, the Ways and Means Committee Democrats released a series of materials titled, "Health Care and the Climate Crisis: Preparing America's Health Care Infrastructure.” These materials describe the role the U.S. health system plays in the climate crisis, with specific emphasis on the health care supply chain. They outline the varying levels of progress within the health care system toward addressing the climate crisis, and they emphasize the crucial role the federal government plays in supporting the health care sector’s efforts to combat the climate crisis.
Centre for Sustainable Medicine hiring Research Associate and Assistant Professor
The Centre for Sustainable Medicine is the National University of Singapore's response to the health crisis of climate change, established to drive accelerated health care decarbonization in Asia and across the world.
The Planetary Health Alliance is seeking applications for Communications Officer and Communications Specialist roles in Washington, DC. Learn more and apply here.
WE ACT for Environmental Justice is seeking to fill multiple roles in their New York City and Washington, DC offices. A full listing of positions and their descriptions can be found here.
UPROSE is looking to fill Energy Justice Coordinator and Deputy Director roles on their team. Learn more and apply here.
Alumni Corner
Caroline Helsen, YCCCH alumna, drives climate and health initiatives at Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
Caroline Helsen graduated with her MPH in Social and Behavioral Sciences, with a Concentration in Climate Change and Health, from the Yale School of Public Health in 2023 and now serves as the Climate and Health Program Manager for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). The Michigan Climate and Health Adaptation Program (MICHAP) supports a climate resilient public health system by investigating climate-driven health risks and collaboratively implementing climate adaptation strategies. In partnership with Michigan State University and the Marquette County Health Department, MDHHS published a Climate and Health Adaptation Guidebook that uses a Health in All Policies framework for the county to imbed climate and health adaptation into master plans. As the program expands, a generalized version will be used to support additional communities across the state. Additional program activities include developing climate and health education materials; strengthening engagement with local health departments; supporting emergency preparedness and response efforts; and building climate and health knowledge across MDHHS.
While at Yale, Caroline received the Dean’s Award for Outstanding MPH thesis. Her research examined whether news media organizations follow U.S. Surgeon General recommendations while covering stories on mental health and collective trauma, including weather-related disasters and climate change. She also worked in health policy for HRSA’s Maternal Child Health Bureau, conducted focus groups for SEIU on electrification and weatherization, and interned at UNICEF. Prior to pursuing an MPH, Caroline spent seven years at NAF, a national non-profit focused on workforce development in health care and other growing industries. To learn more about MICHAP, subscribe for email updates or reach out to Caroline at HelsenC@michigan.gov.
Events in Climate Change and Health
Yale Events:
Climate Change and Health Seminar with Dr. Ana Diez Roux, "Climate change and urban health: opportunities for research and action"
Monday, February 19 | 12:00 – 12:50 PM ET
Winslow Auditorium, 60 College Street, New Haven, CT 06510
Join the Yale Center on Climate Change and Health for a conversation on "Climate change and urban health: opportunities for research and action." Ana V. Diez Roux, MD, PHD, MPH, is Director of the Urban Health Collaborative, and Distinguished University Professor of Epidemiology at the Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University. From 2014 to 2023, she was the Dana and David Dornsife Dean of the Dornsife School of Public Health. Originally trained as a pediatrician in her native Buenos Aires, she completed public health training at the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health. Dr. Diez Roux is internationally known for her research on the social determinants of population health and the study of how neighborhood physical and social environments affect health. Her research areas include social epidemiology and health disparities, psychosocial factors, social environment-gene interactions, environmental health effects, urban health, and the use of multilevel methods and complex systems approaches in population health.
Registration is required. Yale affiliates are welcome to join us in person in the Winslow Auditorium, 60 College Street. All others may stream the event via Zoom.
Other Events:
1st Annual CAFÉ Climate & Health Conference
February 5-7, 2024
Virtual
The Climate Change and Health Research Coordinating Center (CAFÉ) will be hosting its first annual virtual conference on climate change and health on February 5-7, 2024. Participation is free.
2024 Annual Meeting: From the Clinic to the Capitol
February 11-13, 2024
Arlington, Virginia, and Zoom
The Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health and its partners will be holding the 2024 Annual Meeting in person and virtually on February 11-12, with in-person Congressional visits on February 13.
Learn more and register here. Early bird pricing for in-person registration and discounts for Consortium members are available.
APHA's Climate, Health and Equity Summit
February 29 - March 1, 2024 | 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. ET
Virtual
APHA invites you to their first-ever Climate, Health and Equity Summit, a two-day virtual event bringing together APHA members and partners from across sections and disciplines to explore the intersectionality of climate, health and equity, build community, and advance collaborative work in the pursuit of a healthier, more equitable future. This event will be held on Zoom allowing participants to join breakout groups and network with one another.
The Future of Indoor Air: Policy Solutions for Clean and Healthy Buildings
March 6, 2024 | 11:00 a.m. ET
Virtual
At this event, RMI will convene industry experts to illuminate why now is the ideal time to improve indoor air and what policy solutions are available to deploy. The panel will also answer key questions about indoor air pollution and building performance, including those from audience members.
Global Nuclear and Environmental Threats Critical to Climate Change and Human Health Series
March 6 - May 15, 2024 | 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. ET | Bi-weekly on Wednesdays
Given the decades-long global threats of nuclear weapons and power, environmental health exposures from chemical solvents and superfund sites, and resulting environmental injustice, these bi-weekly sessions will be a primer for health professionals, public health officers, first responders, and community-based educators interested in learning from nationally and internationally known experts.
Learn more about the schedule and register here. No cost for attendance. CME/CEU credits available.
