Lara Cushing named to new Fielding Presidential Chair in Health Equity

Lara Cushing, an assistant professor of environmental health sciences whose work focuses on issues of environmental justice, has been appointed the inaugural holder of the Jonathan and Karin Fielding Presidential Chair in Health Equity at theUCLA Fielding School of Public Health.The endowed chair was established by  Dr. Jonathan Fielding, a national public health leader and distinguished professor-in-residence at the Fielding School, and Karin Fielding, also a longtime public health advocate, to support the work of an early-career faculty member who is developing innovative ways to solve persistent health dis parities and strengthen the school’s role as a leader in advancing health equity.Courtesy of the FieldingsDr. Jonathan and Karin FieldingCushing studies the disproportionate impact  of harmful environmental exposures and climate change on low-income populations and communities of color in the U.S. Her research has included investigations intoexposures related to oil and gas drilling, the existence of “heat islands” in urban areas and the cumulative health effects of pollution sources in disadvantaged neighborhoods. As chair holder, she hopes to continue to cultivate partnerships with grassroots community organizations to address sustainability and equity challenges and to use her research to help sharpen regulatory decision making around environmental justice.“I feel like I’ve hit the jackpot in terms of dream jobs,” said Cushing, who is among a growing nu...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news