Global Environmental Health Speaker Series – Every Friday from 12:45-1:45pm
Globally, many low and middle income countries (LMICs) are confronted with disproportionate exposures to a variety of pollutants. Currently, these include contaminated drinking water, indoor air pollution, ambient air pollution, heavy metals, pesticides, and electronic and other hazardous wastes. In many cases, these chemical pollutants have replaced infectious disease agents as the greatest threats to public health in LMICs. As a result of these changes in threats from specific types of exposure, the spectrum of public health concerns in these countries has expanded beyond the traditional challenges of diarrhea, pneumonia, and parasitic and vector-borne diseases to include developmental disorders, birth defects, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, mental health problems, and pediatric cancer. Improved public health practice and public health policies in LMICs can help protect the public from environmental exposures that contribute to the double burden of infectious and chronic diseases.
The Fall 2016 Gijs van Seventer Seminar Series will explore these chemical and infectious determinants of global environmental health from the perspectives of science, policy, and practice. The seminar will also examine the application of research results in the development of environmental policy, and the approaches and interventions that effectively promote global public health.
