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  • 1st National Symposium on Wildfires and Their Impact on the Environment and Health

1st National Symposium on Wildfires and Their Impact on the Environment and Health

Date & Time

Wednesday, May 06, 2026, 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Category

In-Person

Location

Rutgers Richard Weeks Hall of Engineering

500 Bartholomew Rd Piscataway, NJ, 08854

Information

Registration deadline: April 27

Register
Collage of wildfires and doctors in a lab with name and date of the event on top

About the Symposium

Wildfire smoke has emerged as one of the most pressing environmental health challenges of our time, affecting millions across North America annually. Hosted by the Rutgers Nanoscience and Advanced Materials Center, this symposium will explore cutting-edge research on health impacts, examine effective mitigation strategies, and foster partnerships to protect public health.

Who Should Attend:

  • Public health professionals and researchers
  • Environmental health practitioners
  • Emergency management officials
  • Community health workers
  • Healthcare providers
  • Policy makers and advocates
  • Graduate students in related fields

Topics Include:

  • Impact on air quality and health
  • Wildland-urban interface (WUI) fires
  • Respiratory, cardiovascular, and reproductive outcomes
  • Effect of wildfires on human populations
  • Impact of wildfire-emitted carbonaceous aerosols on climate
  • Community resilience and postfire hazards
  • Novel technologies for detection, prevention, and intervention
  • Opportunities for NIH-funded research and cross-institutional collaboration

Our speaker lineup includes leading experts in wildfire smoke research, public health practice, and environmental policy.

Opening remarks by: Michael Zwick (Rutgers Senior Vice President for Research) | Alberto Cuitiño (Dean, Rutgers School of Engineering) | Perry Halkitis (Dean, Rutgers School of Public Health) | Gustavo Matute-Bello (NIH-NHLBI) | Helmut Zarbl (Director, Rutgers EOHSI)

Keynote speakers: Kyle Walsh (NIH-NIEHS) | Jonathan Samet (UC Boulder)

Oral sessions: Alan Robock (Rutgers) | Alexandra Noel (LSU) | Alika Maunakea (University of Hawaii) | Alison Lee (Mount Sinai) | Amy Padula (UCSF) | Audrey Gastkins (Emory U) | Diana Hamer (National Network of Public Health Institutes) | Erik Svenson (CDC) | George Kelesidis (Delft University) | Jason White (Yale) | Jim Zhang (Duke University) | | Joseph A. Jude (Rutgers Health) | Kai Chen (Yale) |   | Mohammad Baalousha (USC) | Nora Savage (NSF) | Robert Laumbach (Rutgers SPH) | Ruben Juarez (University of Hawaii) | Shuo Xiao (Rutgers Health) | Sotiris Pratsinis (ETH) | Sri Nadadur (NIEHS) | Rawad Saleh (U. Georgia)

Panelists: Michel Boufandel (NJIT) | Erik Svendsen (CDC) | Nora Savage (NSF) | Christa Wright (ULRI CIRI) | Sri Nadadur (NIH-NIEHS) | Mark Wilson (ULRI CIRI) | Jason White (Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station) | Robert Laumbach (Rutgers SPH)