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Environmental Health and Emergency Preparedness

From air pollution to hurricanes, chemical exposures to wildfires – the costs of environmental health challenges impacting the American population are staggering. To contain these costs, communities need support to implement adaptations and mitigations.

NNPHI’s Environmental Health and Emergency Preparedness team (EHEP) works with public health institutes, health departments and other partners to provide technical assistance and trainings focused on increasing communities’ readiness and resilience to environmental health impacts and extreme weather disasters.

The EHEP team brings national scale to localized environmental health and extreme weather efforts, with NNPHI’s member public health institutes offer expertise and connections at the local and statewide level.

  • Technical assistance We are go-to experts in environmental health and emergency preparedness.
  • Coordination We foster collaboration with local, state and national leaders.
  • Expertise We design and host expert panels and steering committees.
Contact the Team

Interested in partnering with the Environmental Health and Emergency Preparedness team? Fill out our contact form.

Contact us

Major projects

Environment and human health workgroup

Bringing together local and state public health experts from public health institutes around the country, the workgroup develops resources for use by member institutes and highlights exemplary climate action initiatives at the local and state level.

Project Firstline

Leading national efforts in collaboration with CDC to advance infection prevention and control education. NNPHI has implemented site visits, webinars and animations to equip public health workers in healthcare settings with critical knowledge.

Public Health LEADS

Funded by CDC, this project aims to strengthen public health workforce pathways by enhancing data science and leadership training programs, with a goal of preparing the workforce to strengthen local, state and national management of environmental health challenges.

Public Health AmeriCorps

NNPHI created a workforce pipeline for AmeriCorps members to serve with Puerto Rico Public Health Trust and Health Resources in Action, both member public health institutes, implementing extreme weather advocacy and community resiliency projects.

Public Health Infrastructure Grant

NNPHI is delivering technical assistance to 107 funded local and state health departments around the nation. EHEP is supporting requests focused on extreme heat action planning, communications resources and environmental health workforce surveys.

Emerging areas in environmental health toggle

Energy equity

In the transition to renewable energy, low-income households are bearing the brunt of the financial and health effects of fossil fuels and a straining electrical grid. The EHEP team is ready to bring together experts and communities to close these gaps.

Extreme heat and mental health

Extreme heat can exacerbate existing mental health symptoms while increasing stress and insomnia. The EHEP team has strong working relationships with member institutes addressing climate effects locally and statewide.

Wildfire urban interfaces

NNPHI is partnering with Underwriter Laboratories’ Chemical Insights Research Institute to prepare communities around the country for the impacts of wildfire urban interfaces, preparing first responders and community members for the unique challenges wildfires pose as they intersect with urban and suburban communities.

Meet the Team

Diana Hamer photo.
Diana Hamer
Director, Environmental Health and Emergency Preparedness
Madelyn Gustafson photo.
Madelyn Gustafson
Program Manager
Jaime Jimenez photo.
Jaime Jimenez
Program Manager
Loren Milliken photo.
Loren Milliken
Public Health Analyst
Francesca Toledo-Alexander photo.
Francesca Toledo-Alexander
Senior Program Manager
Jennifer Ventura photo.
Jennifer Ventura
Program Associate
Photo credits: dirkcuys, Creative Commons