GeoHealth Hub on Climate Change and Health in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
Welcome to the GeoHealth Hub on Climate Change and Health in the MENA region. This program is an international consortium focused on the health impacts of climate change.
Funded by the National Institutes for Health, this program is one of seven Global Environmental and Occupational Health (GEOHealth) hubs dedicated to high priority health research, data management, curriculum and material development, training activities, and policy support. Efforts of the GeoHealth hub in the Middle East and North Africa are concentrated in areas where some of the most vulnerable populations live. The project aims to better understand and address human health impacts of climate change through two complementary approaches: research and training. Interdisciplinary partners include university researchers from the United States, Jordan, Morocco and Lebanon, as well as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization’s Regional Centre for Environmental Health Action.
Our Team
Jordan
Fayez Abdullah, PhD
Overall Co-Lead Principal Investigator
Professor and Director of the Queen Rania Al-Abdullah Center for Environmental Sciences and Technology (QRACEST), Department of Civil Engineering
Jordan University of Science and Technology
United States
Wael Al-Delaimy, MD, PhD
Overall Co-Lead Principal Investigator
Professor, UC San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science
Marc Weiskopf, PhD
Consortium Principal Investigator
Professor, Harvard University, T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Justin Remais, PhD
Consortium Principal Investigator
Professor and Chair of the Division of Environmental Health Sciences, University of California Berkeley School of Public Health
Morocco
Kenza Khomsi, PhD
Consortium and Country Principal Investigator
Affiliated Associate Professor
Mohammed VI University for Health Sciences
Lebanon
Myriam Mrad, PhD
Consortium and Country Principal Investigator
Assistant Professor, University of Balamand
GeoHub Partners
Middle East and North Africa
Jordan University of Science and Technology
University of Balamand
Mohammed VI University for Health Sciences
WHO Regional Centre for Environmental Health Action
United States
University of California San Diego
University of California Berkeley
Harvard University
Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
National Cancer Institute
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
News
UC San Diego Today
Thinking Globally to Address the Impact of Climate Change on Human Health
Second Regional Conference on Climate Change and Health in the MENA by the GeoHealth Hub MENA
June 22, 2023, University of Balamand, Lebanon
The University of Balamand organized the second GEOHealth Hub on Climate Change and Health in the MENA region workshops and conference from June 19 to June 27, 2023. The conference attracted more than 150 attendees and left participants inspired and equipped with valuable insights to address the challenges of climate change and its impact on health in the MENA region.
Leaders of MENA GeoHealth Hub of Climate Grange Convene with Secretary General of Ministry of Environment to Explore Collaborative Opportunities
July 27, 2023, Jordan
Muhammad Al-Khashashneh, the Secretary-General of Jordan's Ministry of Environment, convened with Wael Al-Delaimy, UC San Diego, and Fayez Abdullah, Jordan University of Science and Technology, who is also the Director of the Queen Rania Center for Science and Environmental Technology. Addressing the national climate change policy endorsed by the Council of Ministers, Al-Khashashneh referred to the roadmap established during the Conference of the Parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-27) held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. This roadmap outlines Jordan's commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
Environmental Health Meeting at the Lebanese Ministry of Health and Agreement on a Plan to Remedy the Health Effects of Climate Change
June 27, 2023, Lebanon
The Ministers of Public Health and Environment in the caretaker government, Firas Al-Abyad and Nasser Yassin, held a meeting at the Ministry of Public Health, attended by a delegation from the University of Balamand, with the aim of following up the activities of the Global Center for Health and Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa, GeoHealth Hub MENA, related to climate change, which had been established at the University of Balamand. Participants included Wael Al-Delaimy, UC San Diego, Youssef Bassim and Myriam Mrad, University of Balamand, and two technical teams from the Ministry of Public Health and the World Health Organization.
Research and Publications
Primary climate relevant areas of focus include heat waves, precipitation and water quality, air pollution, and desert dust pollution.
Whaibeh, E., Mrad-Nakhlé, M., Aouad, N., Annesi-Maesano, I., Abbas, N., Chaiban, C., Abi Hanna, J. and Abi Tayeh, G., 2023. The Environmental Exposures in Lebanese Infants (EELI) birth cohort: an investigation into the Developmental Origins of Health and Diseases (DOHaD). International Journal of Environmental Health Research, pp.1-12. Link
Training
The goal of this component is to build individual and institutional capacity. This is achieved through the addition of tracks in environmental health to existing masters and doctoral programs, mentored one-on-one research training, summer courses, workshops, United States visits and virtual webinars.
Graduate students from Jordan, Morocco or Lebanon interested in participating may inquire by emailing Elham.Walid90@gmail.com. Please include a resume, two references and a one-page description of your idea and why you want to be involved.
Testimonials
Jowy Abi Hanna, a student at the University of Balamand in Lebanon, discusses the experience with the GeoHealth Hub on Climate Change and Health in the MENA region.
Ihssane El Marouani, student at the Mohammed VI University of Health Sciences, provides a testimonial of the experience with the GeoHealth Hub on Climate Change and Health in the MENA region.
Past Events
Geo Hub for Climate and Health in the MENA 2022-2023 Webinar Series
April 27, 2023
Smoking Research: Paving the Way for Policy-Making
Jessica Saliba, PhD, Assistant Professor, Public Health Department, University of Balamand
March 22, 2023
Conducting Public Health Research in a Limited Resource Setting: Challenges and Opportunities
Myriam Mrad, PhD, Chair, Public Health Department, University of Balamand
Contacts
United States universities contact
Debbie Loomis, D1Loomis@health.ucsd.edu
MENA universities contact
Elham Walid, geohub.coordinator@gmail.com
GeoHealth on Social Media
Instagram: @geohubmena
Twitter: @GEOHubMENA