Students and student groups from five universities across the nation have been recognized as this year’s Student Champions for Climate Justice by APHA’s Center for Climate, Health and Equity

The Student Champions for Climate Justice program awards $500 grants to college students who are developing campus activities focused on climate solutions and social justice through a public health lens. This year’s awardees are from the University of South Florida, the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria, the University of Texas Medical Branch, Grand Valley State University and New York University.

“People who are college students now will be the next generation of activists for climate justice and health equity, and the Student Champions program enables them to make a difference in their communities,” Katherine Catalano, MS, deputy director of the Center for Climate, Health and Equity, told The Nation’s Health. “These students did not create the current climate crisis, but they are the ones who will have to make widespread changes to adapt to a global public health problem that is only worsening.”

Some student awardees will be presenting their work at APHA’s Annual Meeting and Expo on Monday, Oct. 28.

Austin Le, MS, who leads the student group at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria in Illinois, will discuss planned work on a clinical case competition for medical students that highlights the medical complications that can arise from climate change. Using an open-source, peer-reviewed health curriculum, the students will discuss challenges they may face in their future careers as physicians when encountering patients exposed to extreme heat, air pollution or vector-borne diseases.

Also presenting is Hannah Harburg, who heads the project at the University of South Florida. Harburg’s project is developing a documentary on climate change and how it affects farm workers in Florida. The Activist Lab at the University of South Florida’s College of Public Health created the educational film, which will bring awareness of the health impacts of climate change that disproportionately affect farm workers — a vulnerable population that includes many people who face barriers to health care access due to immigration status.

The three other awardees are holding events on campus this month.

Destruction from Hurricane Beryl in Galveston, Texas, inspired students at the University of Texas Medical Branch to host an emergency preparedness fair. And students at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, are holding a health education week on campus that will include a waste audit to examine how much waste is generated by the university’s three health campus buildings.

The final award was given to students at New York University, who will hold an art fair for science and medical students to highlight the connections between advocacy, health and self-expression. The art fair will feature drawing, painting, sculptures and performing arts, such as dance and the spoken word.

Photo by SDI Productions, courtesy iStockphoto