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3100.0: Monday, November 8, 2004: 10:30 AM-12:00 PM | |||
Panel Discussion | |||
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| The Equal Health Opportunity Committee of the American Public Health Association recognizes that the environment in which people live has a significant effect on their health. Every day, people from economically and politically marginalized communities both in the US and abroad, are exposed to unfair levels of environmental risk evolving from multiple sources. According to Healthy People 2010, racial and socioeconomic disparities exist in hazardous environmental exposure, which has led to the development of several national health objectives to reduce exposure for these populations. This session will focus on environmental issues in communities of color and poverty. Our speakers will discuss the politics of environmental justice, the need for reform at national and local levels, and public policy challenges. Successful programs to improve environmental health disparities will be shared and the role of public health will be examined. Communities of color and the poor continue to be unfairly victimized by polluted sites and inadequate environmental law enforcement and often experience greater health risk while lacking basic services and deficiencies in health service delivery. People of color and the poor in these communities live in environments that are toxic to their physical, mental, and spiritual health. Policies and health initiatives that protect the environment, and also respond to the needs of the poor must be set in place to meaningfully address this pervasive problem. Individuals living in neighborhoods with toxic environments must have a voice in environmental decisions affecting their health and the health of their community. Environmental justice remains a critical factor that must be considered when addressing the persistent multi-faceted problem of poverty and health disparities in the US. | |||
| Learning Objectives: At the end of the session, participants will be able to: 1. Identify the political and economic drivers of environmental health injustices. 2. Describe the elements of successful community and coalition based interventions to improve environmental health. 3. Consider ways to change public health practice for assurance of improved environmental health for all populations. | |||
| Pamela Tau Lee, BS Vernice Miller Travis | |||
| J. Henry Montes, MPH | |||
We ACT Community Research Agenda ![[ Recorded presentation ]](/static/img/filetypes/16x16/wrf.gif){kind=small} Denise Miller-Travis | |||
| Equal Health Opportunity Committee Scientific Session: Environmental Justice | |||
| See individual abstracts for presenting author's disclosure statement and author's information. | |||
| Organized by: | APHA-Equal Health Opportunity Committee | ||