Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity (WHO 2021). The impacts are already being felt through air and nonrecyclable waste pollution, disease, extreme weather events, forced displacement, food insecurity, and pressures on mental health. Every year, environmental factors take the lives of 13 million people. Sixty-three percent of Americans say climate change is affecting their local community. The picture is bleak, but not all hope is lost. The time to act is now.
With the above in mind, Rutgers University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Princeton University, and Stevens Institute of Technology have joined forces to hold a Regional Symposium on ‘Climate Change and Planetary Human Health’. The goal of this symposium it to learn what each of our respective institutions are engaged with in research, innovation and implementation to address one the 21st century biggest challenges, and to identify potential areas of collaboration that would benefit the population of New Jersey and beyond. We have put together a timely and exciting line of topics and speakers.