Background/Objectives:

There is international consensus that climate change poses many threats to human health and wellbeing. Climate drivers affect human health outcomes directly through weather events such as extreme heat, wildfires, droughts, storm surges, and floods, and indirectly through a series of exposure pathways. The NIH Climate Change and Health Initiative (CCHI), launched in 2021, is an NIH-wide effort to develop the first coordinated NIH plan for research and training on the impacts of climate change on human health. During this presentation, the U.S. National Institutes of Health will share the strategic vision of the initiative as well as new initiatives developed to address climate change and human health issues.

Approach/Activities:

CCHI is an NIH-wide effort developing a research initiative on the impacts of climate change on human health. The Initiative created a core framework in 2021 led by seven NIH IC Directors. The framework was informed by a significant planning and engagement process that reflects extensive input and coordination from community organizations, academic scientists, and stakeholders. Since the launch, the Initiative has also established a monthly webinar series, developed funding opportunities for the scientific community, and kicked-off training and capacity building activities such as the Climate and Health Scholars Program.

Results/Lessons Learned:

NIH CCHI Framework includes four major areas of interest: Health Effects Research, Health Equity, Intervention Research, and Training and Capacity Building and nine key areas of supporting science for climate change and health research. The Initiative aims to support impactful research across these domains and build a community of practice comprising outstanding and committed scientists, trainees, and specialists in health, climate sciences and additional disciplines to address the complexity of the climate change problem in a trans--disciplinary, coordinated manner. Beyond expanding research, NIH funding efforts include plans to build capacity, workforce, diversity, and equity in research around the world.

Physical and online retail food environments represent one aspect of the commercial determinants of health that shape what foods and drinks are available and marketed to communities around the world. To advertise food and beverage products, businesses deploy creative campaigns, including ones that could be seen to cross ethical and legal lines. This session will use examples of problematic food marketing in Guatemala to ask whether public health can overcome unethical commercial practices in retail food environments, and what traditional and non-traditional avenues it could pursue to do so.

The session will examine three examples: 1) How tropes of hygienic racism are embedded in marketing messaging to position certain industrial food products as superior to equivalent locally-produced goods; 2) How different industrial food products are marketed through cultural appropriation of words and images associated with indigenous and peasant foodways; and 3) How different kinds of product packaging and visual advertisements overtly and subtly propagate misleading health claims.

The presentation will foreground the ethical and legal concerns raised by the three case study examples. It will pay particular attention to the power dynamics and race-class-gender hierarchies of the cultural context of Guatemala, the available scientific evidence for the observed marketing claims, and the existing and in-development national legal mechanisms that offer relevant community protections. The session will conclude by highlighting non-traditional partnerships that are potentially available to public health professionals around the world who are interested in overcoming the challenges of unethical marketing practices in retail food environments.

Public interest in the health harms associated with “natural” gas stoves is at an all-time high, leaving concerned individuals increasingly seeking credible guidance from health experts. It is critical that public health leaders mobilize and communicate that a cleaner, healthier, and safer future is one where families are not breathing in harmful emissions from gas stoves. At the 2022 Annual Meeting, APHA became the first national public health organization to pass a formal policy statement on this topic, following in the footsteps of medical organizations like the American Medical Association and American Lung Association.

This presentation will synthesize the findings of multiple peer-reviewed scientific studies cited in the policy statement. These studies span decades and clearly show gas stoves generate harmful air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which is associated with an increased risk of asthma in children. Despite this evidence, few safeguards are in place to protect the health of the public from gas stove emissions, particularly in overburdened and underserved communities. While comprehensive federal law regulates outdoor air quality in the United States, there are no federal indoor air quality guidelines, and few state or local policies address indoor air pollution. Those living in smaller, older, less ventilated homes are at higher risk of the effects of indoor air pollutants from a variety of sources, introducing a disproportionate risk of illness among lower-income populations and people of color.

Based on this scientific evidence, this presentation will also discuss the role APHA and public health professionals can play in advocating for an equitable, multipronged approach to combat indoor air pollution from gas stoves, including policy change, program development, education about pollutant mitigation, and investment. Lastly, this presentation will highlight how the APHA policy statement has been received since its passage, including media coverage and policy attention.

The EPA's revised Lead and Copper Rule has left many utilities seeking guidance and help from their local health providers.

Home to over 150,000 residents, covering nearly 60 square miles, the City of Olathe, Kansas, has a distribution system of 37,374 water service lines. The City of Olathe created the Olathe Pipe Replacement and Education Program (OPREP), a new city-wide program with dedicated staff tasked with navigating the LCRR and educating and working with all city water customers.

The City of Olathe quickly became a leader in Kansas lead service line replacement. They built a partnership with the local health department to help implement the new requirements. The prioritization of critical facilities and vulnerable populations left no resident at a disadvantage, instead working strategically to provide enhanced inventory across the entire community. Olathe had no pre-existing records of service line materials in the city, which meant developing a resident survey, a new stream of communications, and a smart inventory system. The collaboration with Johnson County Department of Health has allowed Olathe to live into its leadership philosophy of proudly making a positive difference while building a safe and quality community.

Now, with the help of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, all lead and galvanized steel service lines are replaced at no cost to the homeowner ensuring all residents have the chance to replace their water line. The collaboration between this utility and local health department gives transparent communication and support for their local community.

According to The Trust for Public Land, one in three Americans do not have a public park within a 10-minute walk from home. This statistic puts into perspective just how important it is for communities to invest in parks and park improvement projects and champion Fredrick Law Olmsted’s vision of parks for all people.

Olmsted believed parks function as “lungs of the city,” offering spaces that foster physical and mental health. He was an early member of the American Public Health Association and understood humans’ need for access to nature and the critical connection between a thoughtful built environment and health and ecological well-being. Recent data from the Trust for Public Land found that many, including low-income communities and communities of color, face serious barriers when it comes to equal access to green space.

As cities realize and harness the transformative power of park-building, there are challenges, including green gentrification. This often-debated phenomenon is caused by environmental planning that excludes or displaces politically disenfranchised residents. Frederick Law Olmsted and the Olmsted firms frequently emphasized the correlation between public green space and increased property values. In the 19th century, this was a selling point, but today, this same argument is sometimes used to condemn the rejuvenation of parks around the country. Join us as we closely examine this phenomenon in our panel discussing green gentrification.

Does park-making and park-upgrading cause displacement? And, if so, how can we address this? Is it possible to renew public green spaces while ensuring neighbors can afford to remain in their homes? As communities now start to employ infrastructure dollars, how can the money be used to reunite neighborhoods, promote equity and community health and revitalize important urban centers?