WORKSHOP PROPOSAL: GEO HEALTH: IMPACTS AND MITIGATION OF IMPACTS ON HUMAN HEALTH DUE TO A CHANGING NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

Due to climate change and the world’s growing population, human health is becoming increasing impacted by environmental changes. These include, but are not limited to, extreme heat and cold snaps, flooding, wildfires, the northward migration of tropical insect-borne diseases, the urban heat island effect, the increasing occurrence of harmful algal blooms, and environmental degradation due to release and/or burial of anthropogenically-generated pollutants originating from waste, manufacturing, and mining.

Many of the above phenomena, whether related to climate change or the impact of people on the natural environment, have imposed significant and serious impacts on human health. To identify possible solutions, the Geological Society of America (GSA), a professional society of over ten thousand members and many affiliated geoscience societies will survey its constituents and collect input on where the geosciences are best positioned to make fast progress in ameliorating environmental impacts on human health.

Results of their community survey will be summarized in a report that will be made available to the public. Key outcomes will be the identification of geoscience-related environmental processes that have the highest human-health impacts and are primed for immediate resolution and/or intervention. Broader Impacts of the activity will be to improve our understanding of and better management of environmental impacts on human health.

The Geological Society of America (GSA) will conduct a broad, inclusive, results-driven survey of its constituents. Activities will include: feedback via a web-based submission platform for GSA members, Divisions, and Associated Societies. There will also be social media campaigns.

In addition, GSA will also hold in-person opportunities for direct contributions at its Section Meetings that have a large percentage of student participants. The outreach efforts will focus on broad outreach and ensure wide disciplinary participation reaching students, early career professionals, and underrepresented groups, as well as experienced professionals in the geosciences.

Direct outreach to selected members of the broader professional community will also be held, as will online brainstorming sessions for targeted groups. The goal of the information collection exercise is to gather ideas and research areas where geoscientists, communities, and medical professionals can come together to accelerate our nation's ability to mitigate and minimize the health impacts of changes in the environment due to climate and anthropogenic activities.

Results of the survey will be summarized in a report and posted on the Geological Society of America website. An important component of the final report will be the identification of targets that can be addressed in a significant way within a 2 to 3-year timeframe. Information gathering will include online survey vehicles, virtual gatherings, one-on-one discussions with experts, and broad outreach across all fields of geoscience.

An important aspect of the survey effort will be engagement of early career scientists and members of groups traditionally underrepresented in the sciences.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.