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Third Isadore Bernstein Symposium
"Environmental Health Implications of Climate Change" Friday, March 26th 2004 Auditorium
It has been a recurring theme of this series of symposia – of which this is the third – that science should play a strong role in the approach to environmental health policy. Unfortunately, the nature of science does not always fit the popular picture held by society at large, which likes to believe that science can resolve complex issues by identifying precisely what will happen under a given set of circumstances. So, when science fails to provide definitive answers, public mistrust is engendered. This is when policy makers and politicians lose confidence in the ability of science to be useful to them. Often, incomplete science can be misused to support particular ideological viewpoints and the tendency of the media to polarize issues can further distort the state of knowledge. Paradoxically, when scientists try to overcome these difficulties, and characterize the uncertainties in their science, the public can become even more confused and mistrustful. It is in this atmosphere that the role of science in environmental health policies can become secondary to non-scientific factors. The example of climate change – and the role of human activity in such change – and its impact on the health of human populations is of considerable current significant concern. Although the main body of scientific opinion is agreed on the existence of climate change, notably global warming, there remain some dissenting voices. In addition, the magnitudes of any resulting impacts on human health continues to be a major topic for discussion. In turn, policy makers seem to be unclear about what might be the most appropriate responses to the potential threat that may be posed and the relative costs and benefits. The debate needs to be conducted both in terms of basic science and the interface between science and public policy. Importantly, public perceptions are heavily influenced by the way in which the issues are communicated through the media. The Symposium sets out to bring together the contrasting viewpoints, and provide a forum for intelligent discussion of the many facets of this complex issue.
Sponsored through the generosity of the Gelman Educational Foundation, with additional support from the University of Michigan Science, Technology and Society Program and from the University of Michigan International Institute ________________________________________________________________
Professor Isadore Bernstein brought distinction to the
University of Michigan through his scholarly research, teaching and
public service. Internationally known for his research in the areas
of environmental toxicology and cutaneous biochemistry, he was widely
regarded as an outstanding scholar in his field. He was born on December
23rd 1919 in Clarksburg, West Virginia. In 1941 he earned his BA degree
in Biology from Johns Hopkins University, and then served as a commissioned
officer in the U.S. Armed Forces, Northern Pacific Theater, from 1941
to 1946. In 1952 he received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Western
Reserve University. He joined the University of Michigan in 1953 and
held appointments in the Medical School and the School of Public Health.
In 1967, he was appointed Professor of Biological Chemistry and Professor
of Environmental and Industrial Health. His many honors include the Taube International Memorial Award for Research in Psoriasis, a Visiting Professorship at Rockefeller University, the Stephen Rothman Memorial Award of the Society for Investigative Dermatology, and the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award of the University of Michigan. In June 1989 he received the prestigious Order of the Rising Sun from the Emperor and Government of Japan for promoting dermatological research interaction at the international level. In April 1990, he was named Honorary Professor of Kunming University, People’s Republic of China. The author of more than 100 peer-reviewed publications, numerous book
chapters and other scholarly works, he devoted his boundless energy
to teaching and nurturing young minds. Nearly one hundred graduate students
received research training in his laboratory and benefited from his
mentorship. All his students enjoyed the warm hospitality of the Bernstein
family. Isadore and Claire Bernstein were married on September 8th,
1941, and had two daughters, Lynne and Amy. Later they had three grandchildren,
all boys. ______________________________________________________________________
Schedule Friday, March 26th 2004
Guest Speakers
Dr. Watson has degrees in chemistry (BSc) and gas phase
chemical kinetics (PhD) from Queen Mary College in the University of
London, England. His subsequent career has focused on wide-ranging aspects
of the global environment, and he is recognized as a world authority
on climate change and its scientific and policy implications. He is
currently Chief Scientist and Senior Advisor for Environmentally and
Socially Sustainable Development at the World Bank. In addition he is
Co-chair of the Board of Directors of the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment,
and of the International Scientific Assessment of Stratospheric Ozone.
Dr. Watson currently also serves as Co-chair or member of a very large
number of other prominent national and international bodies concerned
with atmospheric pollution, climate change and the environment. Previously,
he was Associate Director for Environment in the Office and Science
and Technology Policy in the White House, and prior to that led the
Science Division of the NASA Office of the Mission to Planet Earth.
In addition, he is a former Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change that has produced three global comprehensive assessments
(1990, 1995 and 2001) of the science, ecological impacts and economic
dimensions of climate change. He has received many awards, including
honorary doctorates from two major English universities, and “Companionship”
of the Order of St. Michael and St. George. He also holds the Global
Green Award for International Environmental Leadership, the U.S. EPA
Climate Protection Award, the UNEP Award for Protection of the Ozone
Layer, the U.S. EPA Award for scientific understanding of the ozone
layer, the Climate Institute Scientific Achievement Award for Coordinating
Scientific assessments, the American Association for the Advancement
of Science Award for Scientific Freedom and Responsibility, the American
Meteorological Society Special Award “for notable efforts in organizing
and conducting international assessments in ozone depletion and global
change”, the National Academy of Sciences Award for Scientific
Reviewing, and the American Geophysical Union’s Edward A. Flinn
III Award.
Dr. Patz is a physician, and received his MD from Case
Western Reserve University and MPH from the Johns Hopkins University.
He is on the faculty of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences
at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and is Director
of the Program on Health Effects of Global Environmental Change. He
is a leading authority on the environmental and public health implications
of climate change. In 1998, Dr. Patz was appointed Co-chair for the
U.S. National Assessment on Climate Variability and Change Health Sector
Expert Panel, and in 2002 was convening lead author for the United Nations/World
Bank Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. Since 1994, he has been lead author
on four United Nations assessment reports on the environmental health
impact of climate change. He is Co-editor for the upcoming new journal,
Ecohealth: Conservation Medicine and Ecosystem Sustainability, and is
Co-editor of the textbook “Ecosystem Change and Public Health:
A Global Perspective” (2001). His areas of research interest
include the effects of climate change on heat waves, air pollution and
water and vector-borne diseases, as well as the link between deforestation
and resurgent diseases in the Amazon, and many other areas of environmental
health. He has contributed a large number of publications across the
whole range of these areas. In addition to his primary appointment in
Environmental Health Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Patz
also holds joint appointments in the departments of Epidemiology, International
Health, Microbiology, Medicine, and Earth and Planetary Sciences. Dr.
Patz is board certified in both Occupational and Environmental Medicine
and in Family Medicine
Dr. Gubler has degrees in biological sciences, parasitology and tropical disease ecology from Utah State University (BS), the University of Hawaii (MS) and the Johns Hopkins University (ScD). His entire career has been spent working on vector-borne diseases, and he has lived in tropical countries for 21 years, with extensive field experience in Asia, the Pacific and Caribbean islands, Central and South America and Africa. Dr. Gubler is currently the Director of the Asia-Pacific Institute of Tropical Medicine and Infectious Diseases at the University of Hawaii. A primary interest has been dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever, and he co-developed the mosquito inoculation and immunofluorescent techniques which allowed for the first time the routine virologic confirmation of clinically diagnosed dengue cases. Dr. Gubler also pioneered the concept of active disease surveillance and community-based, integrated mosquito control as the most cost-effective approach to preventing epidemic dengue/dengue hemorrhagic fever. In addition, he coordinated the development of the U.S. National Lyme Disease Program, as well as major emergency responses to epidemics of vector-borne diseases. Dr. Gubler has over 235 publications on every aspect of vector-borne diseases. He has served as a frequent consultant to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the WHO, the Canadian International Development Research Center, U.S. Agency for International Development, the Rockefeller Foundation, the South Pacific Commission, the U.S. Department of Defense, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH, the Electric Power Research Institute, and numerous national governments around the world. Dr. Gubler is Professor of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiology at the University of Hawaii School of Medicine. He is Past-President of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and has received numerous academic, professional and community service awards.
Dr. Parson holds degrees in physics from the University
of Toronto and management science from the University of British Columbia,
along with a PhD in public policy from Harvard University. He is Professor
of Law and Associate Professor of Natural Resources and Environment
at the University of Michigan. His interests include environmental policy,
particularly its international dimensions, the political economy of
regulation, the role of science and technology in public issues, and
the analysis of negotiations, collective decisions, and conflicts. His
recent research has included projects on scientific and technical assessment
in international policy-making, the policy implications of carbon-cycle
management, the design of international market-based policy instruments,
and the development of policy exercises, simulation-gaming, and related
novel methods for assessment and policy analysis. He has published many
works in these areas. Dr. Parson served as leader of the “Environmental
Trends” Project for the Government of Canada and as editor of
the resulting book, Governing the Environment: Persistent Challenges,
Uncertain Innovations. His most recent book, Protecting the Ozone
Layer: Science and Strategy, was published by Oxford University
Press in 2003. Dr. Parson has served on the Committee on Human Dimensions
of Global Change of the National Academy of Sciences, and on the Synthesis
Team for the U.S. National Assessment of Impacts of Climate Change.
He has worked and consulted for the International Institute for Applied
Systems Analysis (IIASA), the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP),
the Office of Technology Assessment of the U.S. Congress (OTA), the
Privy Council Office of the Government of Canada, and the White House
Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). In former lives, Dr.
Parson was a professional classical musician and an organizer of grass-roots
environmental groups. Getting to the School of Public Health and Parking For those attending the symposium from off-campus sites, please note that there is no on-campus public parking. The front entrance to the School of Public Health is located off Observatory Street (across from Mosher Jordan dorm). We suggest that you use the Vistor Parking at the Taubman Center (M18) on East Medical Center Drive. Stop by the registration table to receive a complementary parking coupon. http://www.parking.umich.edu/maps/north_medical.pdf http://www.parking.umich.edu/maps/overview.pdf
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Robert T. Watson
Jonathan Patz
Duane Gubler
Edward A. Parson