Green Infrastructure (GI) has gained recognition for its notable role in climate change mitigation and urban resilience. Meanwhile, there is a growing body of literature revealing the uneven distribution of GI from environmental justice perspective. Given the role of GI, the distribution should also be explored in a social vulnerability context and combining green and gray infrastructure. However, the distribution of GI, sewer pipelines, and their relationship with social vulnerability…
Slow violence to disasters: Exploring racialized topographies and contextualizing social vulnerability to flood and other environmental risks
In traditional disaster scholarship, social vulnerability is a framework that leverages individual variables to explore stratification in the instance of disaster. As this body of literature has grown, we have lost more context as to why these variables are used within various applications. However, slow violence is another framework that does not necessarily focus on disasters traditionally but provides the social and political context to understand why certain individuals may…
Surviving indoor heat stress in United States: A comprehensive review exploring the impact of overheating on the thermal comfort, health, and social economic factors of occupants
In the face of escalating global climate change and the increasing frequency of extreme heat events, the mitigation of building overheating has become an urgent priority. This comprehensive review converges insights from building science and public health domains to offer a thorough understanding of the multifaceted impacts of indoor overheating on occupants. The paper addresses a significant research gap by offering a holistic exploration of indoor overheating of residential buildings…
Black carbon concentrations, sources, and health risks at six cities in Mississippi, USA
Black carbon (BC) in ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) was measured for 15 months (Sept 2013–Dec 2014) at six locations throughout the state of Mississippi, USA, to investigate the distribution, temporal variations, potential sources, and health risks of BC. Sampling sites were divided into two groups based on population: large cities (Gulfport, Hattiesburg, and Jackson) and small cities (Grenada, Hernando, and Pascagoula). The mean concentration of BC was higher in large…
New Paper: Energy Insecurity Indicators Associated With Increased Odds Of Respiratory, Mental Health, And Cardiovascular Conditions
Energy insecurity, defined as the inability to meet household energy needs, has multiple economic, physical, and coping dimensions that affect health. We conducted the first citywide representative survey of energy insecurity and health in a sample of 1,950 New York City residents in 2022. We compiled ten indicators that characterize energy insecurity as experienced in New York City housing settings and then examined associations between number and types of indicators…
New Article: Justice and injustice in “Modular, Adaptive and Decentralized” (MAD) water systems
Centralized water infrastructure is challenged by climate change, infrastructure degradation, underinvestment, and shifting water demands. In its place, scholars have argued for “Modular, Adaptive and Decentralized” (MAD) water systems. We critically interrogate the environmental injustices that produce, and may be reproduced through, MAD water systems. We focus on two key dynamics by which MAD systems emerge: “shoving-out” of, and “opting-out” from, centralized water systems. Using a justice-based framework, we synthesize…
New Article: Indoor and Personal PM2.5 Samples Differ in Chemical Composition and Alter Zebrafish Behavior Based on Primary Fuel Source
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure has been linked to diverse human health impacts. Little is known about the potential heterogeneous impacts of PM2.5 generated from different indoor fuel sources and how exposure differs between personal and indoor environments. Therefore, we used PM2.5 collected by one stationary sampler in a kitchen and personal samplers (female and male participants), in homes (n = 24) in Kheri, India, that used either biomass or liquified petroleum gas…
Invited Perspective: Important New Evidence for Glyphosate Hazard Assessment
Glyphosate is the most widely used pesticide in the world.1 It is also, arguably, the most controversial. Since being classified as “probably carcinogenic to humans” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in 2015,2 glyphosate has received close scrutiny from scientists and regulatory bodies. A new study in this issue of Environmental Health Perspectives by Chang et al.3 provides important new evidence to support glyphosate hazard assessment. The IARC conclusion was driven by the…
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The need to promote sleep health in public health agendas across the globe
Healthy sleep is essential for physical and mental health, and social wellbeing; however, across the globe, and particularly in developing countries, national public health agendas rarely consider sleep health. Sleep should be promoted as an essential pillar of health, equivalent to nutrition and physical activity. To improve sleep health across the globe, a focus on education and awareness, research, and targeted public health policies are needed. We recommend developing sleep…
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Global call to action on sleep health published in The Lancet Public Health
A global call to action was published in The Lancet Public Health Sept. 28 to recognize sleep health as a foundation of human health. Decades of research across disciplines make this fact abundantly clear, and now is the time to begin leveraging sleep health to improve human health and wellbeing worldwide. Authored by an international group of experts — including NIEHS scientist Chandra Jackson, Ph.D. — on behalf of World Sleep Society…
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