Replay and Live Discussion: Climate and Health: What can we do today?

Dr. Kinney joined the School of Public Health faculty in January 2017 as the inaugural Beverly Brown Professor of Urban Health. He was trained as an air pollution epidemiologist at Harvard School of Public Health, and came to BU after two decades at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. In his time at Columbia, he showed how warming temperatures make air pollution like urban smog worse, and more harmful to populations. He led the development of an integrated modeling system to predict the air pollution health effects of climate change into the future. Working at the intersection of climate change, health, and policy, Kinney has conducted research from the South Bronx to China to rapidly growing cities throughout Africa. At Columbia, he also created an interdisciplinary research and teaching program examining the potential impacts of climate change on health. At BU, Kinney is developing a new program that focuses on assessing the health benefits of urban climate action plans, via strategies to promote active transport, green infrastructure, and clean vehicles.

Amruta Nori-Sarma is an Assistant Professor in the Environmental Health Department at Boston University School of Public Health, where she studies the relationship between environmental exposures associated with climate change and health outcomes in vulnerable communities. Her previous work has examined the impact of heat waves and air pollution on health in vulnerable communities in India, South Korea, and across the US. Her current research aims to understand the impacts of interrelated extreme weather events on mental health across the US utilizing large claims datasets. She also has an interest in evaluating the success of policies put in place to reduce the health impacts of climate change.

Gregory Wellenius, ScD leverages his training in epidemiology, environmental health, and human physiology to lead research focused on assessing the human health impacts of the built environment in the context of a rapidly changing climate. His team has made a number of notable contributions to our understanding of the health risks associated with air pollution, noise pollution, other features of our physical environment, and those posed by a changing climate. A key goal of his team’s research is to provide the actionable scientific evidence needed to ensure that our communities are as resilient, sustainable, and healthy as possible, emphasizing the benefits to human health of climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts.

Before coming to Boston University, Dr. Wellenius served as faculty and Director of Brown University’s Center for Environmental Health and Technology and Elected Councilor of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology (ISEE). He has previously taught courses on epidemiology methods, climate change and human health, and methods in environmental epidemiology. He has a strong track record of mentoring undergraduate students, graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. Dr. Wellenius is the 2019 recipient of the ISEE Tony McMichael Mid-Term Career Award and the 2018 recipient of the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching from the Brown University School of Public Health.