EVENTS

Built for Better Health: Improving Human Environments

Every inch of your home is covered in dust mites.  But is everyone is allergic to them? The temperature in an urban area averages three degrees warmer than the suburbs. Does this mean heat waves only affect people in cities? 

From heat islands in the city to molds and mites that may grow in your home, there are many things in the environment which affect your health. Explore the relationship between neighborhoods, your home, and your health in this free family day.  Find out how to create healthier environments for you and your family without breaking your budget.

By exploring the built environment from our house to our neighborhoods to our cities, we discover the ways that our built world can positively and negatively influence health.  The day features a talk at noon with Dr. Lynn Goldman of Johns Hopkins University, a local walking tour, and many activities and experts on-hand to answer questions.
Schedule:

12 Noon: Dr. Lynn Goldman (Johns Hopkins University), pediatrician and epidemiologist, explains the connections between health and the environment.

2:30 PM: What is a healthy home? Why does your mattress get heavier the longer you own it? Join Rebecca Morley, National Center for Healthy Housing and Brian Oliver of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, for an Ask an Expert session.

3:30 PM: Take a built environment walking tour with the National Center for Bicycling & Walking. Learn how to recognize areas that build healthy habits (Tour lasts about 30 minutes).

Throughout the day:
- Explore how air quality affects your lungs with the American Lung Association's DC Chapter.     
- Learn how to minimize the effects of dust mites and other allergens with the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
- Receive a Healthy Homes Maintenance Checklist and talk with staff from the National Center for Healthy Housing.
- Bring home your own walkable neighborhood map and visit with staff from the DC Office of Planning.

Lynn R. Goldman, M.D., M.P.H.
Lynn R. Goldman, a pediatrician and epidemiologist, is Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her areas of focus are children's environmental health, disaster preparedness, and chemical and pesticide regulatory policy. Dr. Goldman is Principal Investigator for the Hopkins National Children's Study Center and co-PI for the Center for Preparedness and Catastrophic Event Response (PACER). As Assistant Administrator for Toxic Substances at EPA, she directed the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances from 1993 through 1998. Prior to joining EPA, Dr. Goldman served as Chief of the Division of Environmental and Occupational Disease Control of the California Department of Health Services. Dr. Goldman has served on numerous boards and expert committees.  Dr. Goldman is a member of the Institute of Medicine (IOM). She is Vice Chairman of the Institute of Medicine Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Chair of the IOM Committee on Secondhand Smoke, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences Standing Committee on Risk Analysis Issues and Review.

This program is co-sponsored by the Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice at the Institute of Medicine.

The program is funded in part by a Science Education Partnership (SEPA) grant from the National Center for Research Resources, a component of the National Institutes of Health.

Museum Location Located at the corner of 6th and E Streets, NW in downtown Washington, DC the Marian Koshland Science Museum is within walking distance of the National Mall, two Metro stations, the Verizon Center, and several other museums and attractions.