Professor and Chair of Epidemiology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA 

Volunteer experience that relates to this position: 

I have served an elected term of academic counselor for the International Society of Exposure Science (ISES), served on the annual meeting planning committee for several years and submitted a proposal for the annual 2021 meeting. Other service includes chairing the Appalachian Translational Regional Network, study section for the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), journal review, senior associate editor of the Journal of Appalachian Health, and co-chair of the NIEHS Disaster Response Committee.

Council members play critical roles as communication conduits among AGU members and leaders. How will you engage with members of your section to advance AGU’s new strategic plan? How might you facilitate engagement with other sections and people outside AGU to support our mission?

Communication is essential for the success of all teams and organizations. Engagement of GeoHealth section members will be a critical role of section leadership. I will work with the section president to develop communication strategies for the membership. Communication must be timely, continuous, and have a multipronged approach. To accomplish this, I propose a monthly email newsletter for section members to provide updates on the research of the GeoHealth membership, celebrate accomplishments of its members, provide AGU Council communication updates, and discuss world events that may impact the field and society. These newsletters will also be converted for social media platforms. Understanding that the AGU community comprises partners around the world who share our mission of addressing scientific and societal changes, relevant news from the section would be shared with health and exposure societies to advance GeoHealth with partners in medicine, engineering, One Health and exposure science. Our GeoHealth section will develop timely statements to share with policymakers and members of the media to demonstrate the rigor of scientific discovery and its role in advancing human knowledge. These solution-based discoveries will be prepared for broad audiences with partnerships with news media and social media venues, such as a dedicated YouTube channel. I am also dedicated to educating and inspiring the next generation of scientists needed to advance the AGU and, specifically, the GeoHealth section. I will identify and engage doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows and new investigators in a “NextGen” work group to advance communication strategies for these scientists within AGU and beyond.  

Section affiliations: 

GeoHealth; Natural Hazards; Science and Society