The Yale School of Public Health’s program to target urban inequalities through research and policy with the Resilient Cities Network
Urban areas are some of the world’s most vibrant—and vulnerable—spaces. In its 2021 report, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) cited the effects of global warming—among them rising temperatures and extreme weather events—as significant risk factors behind a range of diseases, especially among residents with poor access to healthcare and social services. If current climate projections offer any preview, the years ahead will only exacerbate these inequalities.
The Yale School of Public Health aims to combat health inequality by partnering with the Resilient Cities Network: a network of nearly 100 cities worldwide, serving their 220 million inhabitants. This collaboration is working to indentify cities’ priorities at the intersection of climate, health, and health equity—and ultimately will work to test new strategies and design policies that can promote urban health and well-being. These efforts will assist city leaders in providing new blueprints for more resilient, equitable, healthy, and sustainable cities in the face of accelerating environmental uncertainty.
This project draws from a variety of backgrounds, institutions, and research interests. Primary Yale faculty members include Jeannette Ickovics (Samuel and Liselotte Herman Professor of Social and Behavorial Sciences, Yale School of Public Health and Professor of Psychology, Yale University), Elihu Rubin (Professor of Urbanism, Yale School of Architecture), Karen Seto (Professor of Geography and Urbanization Science, Yale School of the Environment), and David Vlahov (Professor, Yale School of Nursing). Additional faculty from the Yale School of Public Health include Robert Dubrow, Kathleen Duffany, Sarah Lowe, and Kai Chen. Graduate students from the Yale Schools of Public Health, Environment, Architecture, and Nursing also contribute substantively to the project. Training the next generation of leaders and placing them in on-the-ground experiences globally are also an integral component.
Laurian Farrell (Global Director, Knowledge Transformation and Regional Director, North America), Malcolm Campbell (Associate, Programs and Knowledge, North America), and Ron Harris (Lead, Knowledge Transformation) represent the Resilient Cities Network. This research is made possible with funding from the Hecht Faculty Network Award and support of the Yale Institute for Global Health, Yale Center on Climate Change and Health, and the Yale Planetary Solutions Project.
