Mary Rice appointed Harvard Chan C-CHANGE director

To the Harvard Chan community,

I’m delighted to announce that Mary Rice will be joining our School as the new director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment (Harvard Chan C-CHANGE) on Oct. 1.

Throughout her career, Mary has worked at the intersection of climate and health, emerging as a leading voice in both research and practice. As the director of the Institute for Lung Health at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, she has led essential research to identify preventable causes of respiratory illness in children and adults, including environmental exposures such as air pollution and allergens. As a physician specializing in pulmonary and critical care medicine, she has also seen first-hand the impact that climate change has on human health, while helping countless patients suffering from chronic lung disease. If climate change is still too abstract to many, it’s certainly urgent and personal to her.

Mary, who will also join our faculty as the Mark and Catherine Winkler Associate Professor of Environmental Respiratory Health, shares our community’s fierce commitment to action. On more than one occasion, she has given expert testimony before Congress on the health effects of air pollution and the benefits of air quality and carbon regulations. In addition, her research has always focused on finding solutions to improve health, and I am confident that under her leadership, the Center will continue to produce cutting-edge research that healthcare providers, public health leaders, and policymakers around the world can use to keep people safe.

I have also been impressed by Mary’s strong interest in creating more multi-disciplinary education and mentorship opportunities for students interested in climate change and health at Harvard Chan School and Harvard Medical School. The Center has a strong opportunity to further strengthen climate education through collaborations with the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability and other research groups across the University.

From investigating the health impacts of burning fossil fuels and natural gas to the many educational and outreach programs engaging with local, national, and global partners, Harvard Chan C-CHANGE has already accomplished so much since it was founded as the Center for Health and the Global Environment in 1996. I look forward to seeing it reach new heights with Mary at its helm.

Finally, I want to express my sincere gratitude to John Rock Professor of Climate and Population Studies Kari Nadeau for steering the direction of the Center over the past 16 months, with the support of our wonderful Department of Environmental Health.

Please join me in thanking Kari and welcoming Mary to the School!

Best,
Andrea

Andrea Baccarelli, MD, PhD
Dean of the Faculty
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health