August 21, 2024 – What are the different socioeconomic and racial factors that influence environmental health outcomes? What methods should researchers use to design studies and analyze data? And how can study findings be effectively translated into health policies?
These were just some of the topics covered at an environmental justice boot camp held August 15–16 at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Around 60 environmental health scientists gathered both on campus and online to learn about methods and approaches for studying environmental health disparities.
Over two days of training, the researchers participated in a series of multidisciplinary seminars, hands-on workshops, and a panel discussion. They not only learned theoretical concepts in fields including sociology, epidemiology, and biostatistics, but also applications to real-world studies—such as the impact of harmful substances in hair products on women’s reproductive health, and the link between environmental chemicals and gestational diabetes.
The boot camp was co-directed by Tamarra James-Todd, Mark and Catherine Winkler Associate Professor of Environmental Reproductive Epidemiology at Harvard Chan School, and Joan Casey, associate professor in the Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Washington (UW). It was organized by the Harvard Chan-NIEHS Center for Environmental Health and collaborating programs and centers at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health; the University of California, San Francisco; and UW.
– Jay Lau
Photos: Kent Dayton
