Many Questions Remain After Judges Order USDA to Fund SNAP During Shutdown
At the eleventh hour on Friday, October 31, two New England federal judges ruled that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) must use billions of dollars in emergency funds to partially cover Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for 42 million Americans living in every county in the nation.
Failure to Pass a UN Declaration on Noncommunicable Diseases is Not an Excuse for Inaction
Near the end of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly last week, Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) and mental health took center stage in a Fourth High-Level Meeting focused on common ground and solutions. I was optimistic that there would be real momentum to act, as NCDs remain a leading cause of death and disability across the world and the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to reduce premature mortality from NCDs is off track by a third.
Gregory Wellenius Receives Beverly A. Brown Professorship
Gregory Wellenius has been named the Beverly A. Brown Professor for the Improvement of Urban Health. Endowed in 2012 through a $4 million donation from Boston University trustee emeritus Richard Shipley (SMG’68, GSM’72), the professorship honors and supports the work of a highly distinguished professor whose research, teaching, and service advance the condition of the more than half the world’s population who live in urban areas. The professorship is named for Beverly A. Brown, the long-time development director of the former Center for Global Health and Development and the wife of BU president emeritus Robert A. Brown.
Researchers Partner with Nonprofits to Track Health Effects of Federal and State Environmental Policies
Since the start of 2025, the Trump administration has issued nearly 200 executive orders, including directives that have dramatically altered the trajectory of the country’s environmental policy, challenging climate-related initiatives and ending environmental justice programs. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has followed suit, attempting to roll back an array of environmental protections that the administration has deemed a burden to domestic oil, gas, and coal production. The agency has characterized these efforts as the “biggest deregulatory action in U.S. history.”
Faculty, Staff, and Students to be Recognized with 2025 SPH Awards
Urmi Phanse, Chris Louis, Nicole Huberfeld, Mary Murphy-Phillips, David Jernigan, and Anita DeStefano are among those who will receive awards at convocation. Congratulations to the members of the School of Public Health community who will be honored with awards at the 2025 SPH Convocation!
Professor Awarded $3.2M Grant to Expand Urban Heat Research
Wellcome, a charitable foundation based in the United Kingdom, has granted Patricia Fabian, associate professor of environmental health, a $3.2 million Climate Impacts Award to expand the scope of her ongoing research on extreme heat and health.
‘There’s No Way Through This but Forward’
No matter your political leanings, policy preferences, or preferred candidates, the presidential re-election of Donald Trump presents serious challenges for the health of the public on a local, national, and global scale. Trump’s Cabinet nominations thus far have provided a clear window into the direction his administration hopes to take on a number of health issues. Below, members of the SPH community share what a second Trump administration means to them personally and to the public health issues that matters most to them—and how we can remain optimistic and embrace opportunities to make progress towards a safer and healthier world.
Extreme Heat May Substantially Raise Mortality Risk for People Experiencing Homelessness
By nature of their living situation, people experiencing homelessness (PEH) are considered one of the most vulnerable populations to the health impacts of extreme weather. PEH are particularly vulnerable to heat, and the impact of heat on mortality in this group is substantially greater than for the general population, according to a new study by the School of Public Health.
Thinking Climate Change? Think Exposure to Extreme Heat
When we think about climate change impacts in cities like Boston, we often envision dumpsters floating in the Seaport or flooding on Morrissey Boulevard. However, exposure to extreme heat results in more emergency room visits, more hospital admissions, and more deaths than hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes combined.
A Clear Path through Murky Waters: Alum Finds Meaningful Career Studying Water Contamination
Upon finishing her PhD in environmental health at the School of Public Health, Beth Haley (SPH’24) moved to Oregon, drawn, she says, to the vast natural landscapes more commonly found out West. As a post-doctoral researcher with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Haley aims to tackle threats to water quality specific to the Pacific Northwest. Beth Haley’s PhD dissertation in environmental health linked sewage overflows with illness in Massachusetts and now her current post-doctoral research with the Environmental Protection Agency aims to tackle water quality in Pacific coastal areas.