Devon Payne-Sturges, an associate professor in SPH’s Department of Global, Environmental, and Occupational Health (GEOH), has won the 2024 Homer Calver Award, a prestigious honor which recognizes national leaders in environmental health. Payne-Sturges was nominated by the American Public Health Association (APHA) Environment Section for the award, which GEOH Department Chair Amy Sapkota calls “one of the most prestigious awards that an environmental health scientist can receive, and well-deserved by Dr. Payne-Sturges.”
Payne-Sturges spoke with Sumaya Abdel-Motagaly ‘26 about her work to achieve a better world for children, families and communities by focusing on topics such as structural racism and health, environmental health disparities and policy reform.
What was your reaction to the award and how did it feel to be nominated?
I was completely surprised and deeply, deeply honored. To be among some of the giants in environmental health who have received this award previously is so inspiring. This nomination recognizes the steady, consistent and sometimes behind-the-scenes work being done to improve policymaking on cumulative risks/impacts, children’s environmental health, environmental health inequities. It is validating to receive this award.
How did you start off in this field, and what drives you to do the work you do?
I studied civil engineering as an undergraduate but wanted to work more closely with communities to solve environmental problems. I worked for the public health program of a nonprofit called the Environmental Law Institute. My boss and mentor was completing his doctorate in public health and inspired me to pursue my MPH at Hopkins, which I did. I then stayed on to earn my doctorate. Curiosity, problem-solving and justice for the underdog motivates me.
Curiosity, problem-solving and justice for the underdog motivates me.
What would you like students and faculty to know about your work?
I focus my research on the upstream causes of health inequities. Environmental health policy decisions have tremendous impacts on the health of large numbers of people, whole communities and entire countries. Because environmental threats to our well-being are complex, like multiple chemical exposures or the climate crisis, it is necessary to integrate diverse perspectives to find policy solutions. I am a believer in team science and I practice it by actively collaborating with interdisciplinary teams, such as my current research project RESPIRAR on structural racism in environmental and occupational health. Another timely example is a recent article published in ELI Forum that I co-wrote with Jan-Michael Arthur and that makes the case for a whole-of-government, multisector, interdisciplinary action agenda for the design of solutions for cumulative risks and impacts within current legal frameworks.
Based on your experience and expertise, what is one piece of advice you would give college students pursuing environmental health?
First, students must recognize that all public health, including environmental health, is political. Second, I would tell students to focus on building their analytical skills. This means taking as many courses as you can that focus on theory and methods, not only in public health but also in other disciplines such as sociology, history, political science.