Write up about the Conference
Last August 2013, in Basel, Switzerland, the 2013 Conference Environment and Health – Bridging South, North, East and West was held and has been a huge success. Approximately 1800 participants from from 70+ countries from all continents presented and attended an exciting and productive program. The participants gather to discuss the influence of environmental factors on human health. The drum school Basel did a trilling opening program “Airing Sounds – Wasting Rhythm”. The performance set the conference to a positive mood for the entire conference. The Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute was the local organizing committee. The 3 societies, International Society on Exposure Science, International Society of Environmental Epidemiology, and International Society Indoor Air and Climate, approved to allow Basel to host the conference. It was the first time that the 3 societies had a joint -conference. There were 96 oral sessions, 41 symposia and 1243 posters presented totaling to 2095 scientific contributions. Topics for the conference included an extensive span of exposure science areas for instance in pesticides, persistent organic pollutions, indoor and ambient air pollution, noise and heavy metals.
Feedback on paper presented
The poster presented in the conference was a big success. Students, post-docs and professors from different countries asked about the methodology used in the study. Structural equation modeling in a Bayesian Framework is an upcoming topic in environmental epidemiology and air pollution epidemiology.
Future directions of research presented
The statistical methods used in the presented research will be applied to future studies. The Bayesian structural equation modeling method will be utilized to look at the effects of black carbon on systemic inflammation, lung function, and blood pressure among traffic enforcers of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority. In addition, another study will also make use of both the Bayesian and Frequentist approaches to examine the associations between air pollution, mental well- being and depression among elderly.
Potential foreign collaborators
Joel Schwartz, PhD, Brent Coull, PhD, Rima Habre, ScD, and Antonella Zanobetti, PhD.
Other important contacts and insights
Dr. Helen Suh, ScD and Dr. Baja will collaborate to look at the effects of air pollution om markers of Inflammation and diabetes for the US population.
Short write-up of one’s participation (to be used to feature/publicize the grantee’s participation in the conference)
Dr. Emmanuel S. Baja, research associate professor, Institute of Clinical Epidemiology, National Institutes of Health University of the Philippines Manila presented his recent work “Structural equation modeling of parasymphathetic and symphathetic response to traffic air pollution in a repeated measures study” at the 2013 Conference Environment and Health – Bridging South, North, East and West in Basel, Switzerland, Approximately 1800 participants from 70+ countries from all continents presented and attended the conference. Participants of the conference gathered to discuss the influence of environmental factors on human health. The 3 societies, International Society on Exposure Science, International Society of Environmental Epidemiology, and International Society of Indoor Air and Climate, hosted the conference and approved to allow Basel to host the conference. The Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute was the local organizing committee. There were 96 oral sessions, 41 symposia and 1243 posters presented totaling to 2095 scientific contributions. Topics for the conference included an extensive span of exposure science areas for instance in pesticides, persistent organic pollutions, indoor and ambient air pollution, noise and heavy metals.
