About 70 University of Michigan students, faculty and staff gathered at the Rackham Graduate School Monday afternoon for the University’s first-ever Climate Vulnerability and Health Symposium. Hosted by the U-M Center for Global Health Equity in collaboration with the School for Environment and Sustainability, School of Public Health and School of Nursing, the forum aimed to bring experts together to discuss inequities related to climate change vulnerability.
The symposium was composed of short presentations by U-M faculty and two panel discussions. One panel featured academics from institutions around the world including the University of Miami, Public Health Foundation of India and the University of Ghana. The event highlighted research that seeks solutions to the disproportionate challenges caused by the climate crisis, particularly in the field of public health.
Paige Fischer, associate professor at the School for Environment and Sustainability, said it is important to look at human health when adapting to the climate crisis at the event.
“When you think about what (climate) adaptation is, it is the process of making adjustments at whatever level of organizations, like more individual households, organizations or institutions,” Fischer said. “It’s the process of adjustment to reduce risk and increase well-being or welfare suited to the environment. … But what is well-being and suitability if not measured by indicators of public health?”
During the panel, Marie O’Neill, a Public Health School professor, said universities can mobilize the skills of its students and faculty to make more tangible, positive environmental change.
“I do think moving forward, connecting areas even within this campus (is important),” O’Neill said. “There are smart people in engineering working on renewable energy, but not necessarily connecting that to the redevelopment of a public housing project, or a place where they could really create infrastructure that would reduce energy burden.”
Engineering sophomore Katrina Walbridge told The Daily she believes the event was an effective way to alleviate stress about the future and climate change, commonly known as climate anxiety.
“I think it’s important for us to have events like this because a lot of people have anxiety about the climate, and this event was focused on what we can do going forward,” Walbridge said. “I think it’s really good to give people a direction to go instead of just anxiety.”
Jonathan Overpeck, professor and dean of the Environment and Sustainability School, said at the panel that the University has the ability to create future leaders of climate action.
“We have a major way in academia to really move the needle in society, and that is through education,” Overpeck said. “We have amazing students at the University of Michigan, undergrads and grads alike, and we are going to ensure that every single learner at the University of Michigan leaves here with the literacy in climate, climate action, sustainability and, most importantly, justice.”
Daily Staff Reporter Greta Fear and Daily Staff Contributor Cristina Micu can be reached at gcfear@umich.edu and cmicu@umich.edu.