On April 4, the White House brought together researchers, educators, organizations, community leaders, and other stakeholders to discuss the implications of climate change for public health. Dean Lynn Goldman, who is an EOH professor, was a speaker and EOH Department Chair Melissa Perry was an invited participant at the event where the U.S. Global Change Research Program released its latest report, “The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States: A Scientific Assessment.” The report offers the strongest evidence to date linking climate change to health risks. Three years in the making, the report, reviewed by the National Academies of Science, is the work of nearly 100 experts in climate change science and public health from eight government agencies.
News media covering the White House event, such as the Associated Press, quoted Dean Goldman, who pointed out the connection between global warming and increasing asthma attacks in children.
Leading up to the report, Dean Goldman and Professor Perry participated in last year’s White House Roundtable on Climate Change. To help raise awareness of the then-draft-report’s public comment period, the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health held a symposium that featured the report’s authors and resulted in lively discussion.