Partnerships for Environmental Public Health (PEPH)
Members of a PEPH Working Group organized a June 2008 workshop to engage a diverse set of communities with different perspectives and areas of expertise in the field of environmental public health. The committee identified certain groups from the responses to the RFI. The full list of participants and their area of expertise is included at the end of this summary. The organizing committee invited individuals with familiarity of NIEHS and its mission as well as individuals with little to no familiarity, but who were leaders in a field that could benefit the new PEPH program. The idea was to stimulate new ways of thinking and consider novel approaches to long-standing issues and questions. The organizing committee provided all participants with the RFI Executive Summary and a proposed model for PEPH so that they could ground some of their feedback and comments on the report and model.
The organizing committee structured the workshop around three key sessions. Each session focused on a specific question (see below) and had three components: an introductory panel, break-out discussions, and a report-back period. The introductory panel was composed of five to seven participants each sharing their views. After any clarifying questions, attendees split into four pre-assigned break-out groups. The break-out groups engaged in a discussion related to the designated question for that session. At the end of the break-out discussion, all workshop attendees reconvened to share the most significant concepts discussed in the break-out groups.
- In the environmental public health field, what issues and un-met needs are faced in the areas of building capacity, evaluation, communication, and research?
- What are the most important Tools needed?
- What creative new Strategies can be used?
- What Resources are needed (beyond money)?
- What Partnerships should be fostered?
- What is NIEHS's unique role in helping identify and foster solutions to the following:
- Building capacity
- How would you balance and prioritize the diversity of critical areas/needs in EPH?
A summary of the workshop can be downloaded here(500KB) .