Results of a new study led by the University of Maryland School of Public Health show that people infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 exhale infectious virus in their breath – and those infected with the Alpha variant (the dominant strain circulating at the time this study was conducted) put 43 to 100 times more virus into the air than people infected with the original strains of the virus.

Dr. Sacoby Wilson will receive the Maryland League of Conservation Voter’s (Maryland LCV) John V. Kabler Memorial Award at their annual event, Changemakers: Celebrating Environmental Leaders, on September 23, 2021. The award recognizes an outstanding environmental leader or organization. Previous winners include Congressman Wayne Gilchrest (2008) and DNR Secretary John Griffin (2012). 

The School of Public Health would like to recognize and welcome the following faculty and staff to our community. Some are already part of our community and are being recognized for new roles/titles, while others are joining us this academic year. Welcome and congratulations to all!

Climate change is impacting us all, but it’s not impacting us all the same way, Dr. Sacoby Wilson, director of the Center for Community Engagement, Environmental Justice and Health, said during the opening session of the 2021 Environmental Justice and Health Disparities Symposium, Aug. 19-21. 

Researchers know that SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) spreads through air, but are working to pinpoint how much virus hangs in small airborne particles. A new study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases explored how much SARS-CoV-2 virus is released into the air when people infected with COVID-19 sing, talk or simply breathe. 

Dr. Sacoby Wilson, who directs the Center for Community Engagement, Environmental Justice and Health (CEEJH) in the University of Maryland School of Public Health, has been appointed to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Science Advisory Board.

We're all confused about what we should be doing about masks—and with good reason. We are receiving conflicting information from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) on whether we should wear masks and continue to follow social distancing practices. And every day, the promise of a mask-free summer is called into question as we learn more about the Delta variant—a more contagious mutation of COVID-19. To clear up the confusion, Bem Faris, communications and media manager for the SPH sat down with Dr. Donald Milton, professor of applied environmental health at the University of Maryland and a leading expert on how viruses spread through the air.

Giving everyone a seat at the science table is the intention behind the term “citizen science,” which was coined in the 1990s. However, does it achieve inclusivity? 

Right now, two pandemics are happening simultaneously: COVID-19 and systemic racism. These issues have driven a conversation across several divisions in society, including the environmental health sciences (EHS) research community, according to an article published in May 2021. 

Did you know? Bisphenol A (BPA), a high-volume industrial chemical, is routinely used in plastic food, water containers and even the lining of food and drink cans.