Speakers at the CU Climate and Health Program symposium called for stronger regional partnerships to address negative health impacts.
The Colorado Consortium on Climate Change and Health's second symposium brings together experts from the Anschutz Medical Campus, visiting experts from other universities, and community organization leaders to address health concerns caused by climate change. We talked about how to find a way.
Common themes: better to work together.
share knowledge and experience
Academics, public health institutions, and community representatives must create opportunities to enable timely, productive, and regional interactions. Casey Ernst, Ph.D., MPH, chair and professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman School of Public Health at the University of Arizona, said in-person meetings make a difference when it comes to building trust.
“Being here can make a big difference,” Ernst told about 50 people gathered in the Nighthorse Campbell Native Health Building on the Anschutz Medical Campus.
In his keynote address, Ernst explained that providing as much relevant and timely information as possible is a key element when planning to involve community partners. He said residents are more likely to pay attention to local rather than statewide alerts, so it's important to design detection systems with that in mind.
The daylong symposium featured several speakers, poster presentations, meet-and-greets with community groups, and mentoring sessions.
In her talk, Caitlin Rublee, MD, MPH, assistant professor of emergency medicine in the CU School of Medicine, provided an overview of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, which was held in Dubai from November 30 to December 30. The conference, also known as COP 28, included the first-ever Health Day on December 3, 2023, she said.
The opportunity to meet with leaders from around the world is an opportunity to share knowledge and experience that can be applied in your local community. Mr Rubley highlighted Australia's first health and climate strategy, which could provide insights that could be useful to other countries. Rubry also noted her meeting with senior Guatemalan officials, saying she has been attending COPs for decades and could serve as an example of her determination to push for change.
unified approach
Dr. Benjamin Zaychik, professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Johns Hopkins University, outlined the work of the Baltimore Social and Environmental Collaborative, which receives funding from the U.S. Department of Energy. In this collaboration, climate scientists and Baltimore citizens work together to identify scientific questions and community priorities that will guide the research that results from that research.
Zychik's partners in his work include church leaders, community organizers, city officials, and fellow scientists and trainees. They study urban heat, flooding, air pollution, and decarbonization.
Even as scientists collect data, groups participating in collaborative research face challenges in making use of it. He outlined his three challenges. It's systems versus relationships. Range and flexibility. research and implementation. For example, he said that while the personal connections that come from relationships are valuable, it's also important to have systems in place to ensure that all other partners are treated fairly.
Managing the flow of knowledge is a key responsibility in supporting the overall goals of the program, as common problems ultimately require a unified approach.
Zaichik cited the following maxim: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” The issues we face are more urgent and require a comprehensive perspective, he said.
“We now need to go farther and faster together,” he said.
