Environmental Health

Spending time in nature is good for us. Studies have shown that contact with nature can lift our well-being by affecting  emotions, influencing  thoughts, reducing stress and improving physical health. Even brief exposure to nature can help.

Joey TeresiMS, Environmental Health SciencesHometownChannahon, ILFuture plansAn environmental health or public health career in the public sector.“I’ve been lucky to have advisers in DEOHS that help me set lofty goals and meet those goals.”- Joey Teresi

Bob Wilbur thought he’d found a retirement home that would be a place of peace. Nestled against Admiralty Bay on the western edge of Whidbey Island, the three-story house is surrounded by trees and shoreline. It offers the kind of quiet that only an island can provide. Except when the Growlers fly. 

Hannah McKinleyBS, Environmental HealthHometownSnohomish, WAFuture plansPursuing an MPH in DEOHS and an MPA in the UW Evans School.“I feel very lucky to have found a place to explore so many of my academic interests.”- Hannah McKinley

Abbie GilbertMS, Environmental Health SciencesHometownWarrensburg, MOFuture plansPursuing a PhD in DEOHS focusing on infants’ exposure to heavy metals.

Migration to King County has grown over the years, in part due to the boom of the tech sector. As housing prices have risen, public health researchers want to know how this has affected internal displacement within the county, especially for low-income households.

Assistant Professor Tzu-Hsin Karen Chen joined the UW last year with a joint appointment in the Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS) and the Department of Urban Design and Planning (UDP) in the College of Built Environments.

The University of Washington School of Public Health (UW SPH) continues to offer some of the best public health graduate education in the country, according to the 2024 rankings released by U.S. News & World Report. UW SPH ranked No.

Kathleen Moloney, DEOHS research scientist. As unprecedented as the outbreak of COVID-19 felt, it was far from the first time a deadly disease has swept the globe. 

 

For University of Washington School of Public Health alum Rachel Shaffer (MPH, ’18, PhD, ’20), the notion of public health has always been present.

 

 

Researchers using a novel method of measuring long-term wildfire smoke exposure have found that Indigenous communities in California are exposed to disproportionate amounts of dangerous particulate matter—sometimes far beyond what has been previously known.

A new rule passed by the US Environmental Protection Agency this month will prevent thousands of premature deaths each year. The rule strengthens the national air quality standard for industrial emissions of fine particles, often called soot, as part of the Clean Air Act.

It might start with a slight scent of smoke from a faraway wildfire, and often ends with weeks-long warnings about hazardous air quality, calls to shelter indoors and lessons about how to build homemade air filters.

The UW Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS) recently changed the name of our Bachelor of Science degree to Environmental Public Health.

2023 has been a year of community resilience for the UW Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS). Together with many partners, our students, faculty and staff spearheaded projects to help Pacific Northwest communities respond and adapt to extreme heat, flooding, wildfire smoke and other impacts of climate change.

Read the full UW news release

John Lykins Applied MS, Environmental Health Sciences Hometown Midland, OH Future plans A career as an industrial hygienist in the maritime industries. “I want to find solutions that have a minimal impact on people’s workflow while providing maximum protection for workers.”

Aesha Mokashi MS, Environmental Health Sciences Hometown Portland, OR Future plans Working as an environmental health scientist with King County and internationally.

Christopher Alawode MPH, Occupational and Environmental Medicine Hometown Rancho Cucamonga, CA Future plans Working as an Occupational Medicine physician, perhaps in a rehabilitation center.

Mariam Assaad MPH, Environmental Health Sciences Hometown Brazil and Lebanon Future plans Utilize my degree to create a healthier environment and safer workplaces. “I am grateful for the hands-on experiences, the lessons I’ve learned, and the meaningful connections I’ve built.”

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University of Washington School of Public Health faculty member Kristie Ebi was recently elected as a fellow of the American Geophysical Union (AGU).