Air Quality and Health Initiative

Overview

Air quality is a critical environmental factor influencing health outcomes, linked to major chronic diseases throughout life course including asthma, cardiovascular disease, respiratory illnesses, diabetes, and certain types of cancer. Despite its significance, many questions remain about how air pollution impacts health and how best to manage these effects. WashU has pockets of expertise and externally-funded research in air quality and health that are not yet at the scale and with the level of coherence that would be possible with greater connectivity. To address this Drs. Randall Martin, Yin Cao, Ziyad Al-Aly, Victor Davila-Roman, and Jay Turner, together received support from the Transcend Initiative) to integrate and amplify these activities, aiming to establish a cohesive, internationally recognized research center.

Aligned with WashU’s Here & Next strategic priorities in Public Health and Environmental Research, the Air Quality and Health Initiative will leverage expertise across various domains, including exposure assessment, built environment, health disparities, health policy, global health, experimental and predictive models, and clinical and epidemiological research. Specifically, the Initiative will support interdisciplinary research through co-advised trainee programs, workshops, symposia, and seminars, fostering collaboration among faculty and students. It will enhance WashU’s capacity to secure extramural funding, attract top talent, and elevate the university’s scientific output and global reputation in air quality and health. Our Initiative will also have valuable connections with Digital Transformation, Global Research, and community-engaged research in St. Louis and internationally.

Members

Team Leads

Trainees