Community Exposures and Health Training: Methods for Examining Differences in Community Environmental Exposures and Health
August 12-13, 2025 | Livestream, virtual training
Registration is open! Join us for the livestream Community Exposures and Health Training on August 12-13, 2025.
The Community Exposures and Health Training is a two-day intensive course featuring seminars and applied analytical sessions on key concepts, exposure assessment techniques, epidemiologic methods, community engagement and health policy applications, and statistical analytic approaches for conducting effective and solution-driven community environmental health research.
Subscribe for updates on registration and scholarship dates, deadlines, and announcements.
Jump to: Overview | Prerequisites | R tutorials | Instructors | Scholarships | Locations | Testimonials | Registration Fees | Additional Information
Training Overview
Summer 2025 dates: Livestream, online training, August 12-13, 2025; 11am EDT - ~5pm EDT.
Numerous studies have documented population differences in adverse health outcomes, ranging from an increased prevalence of asthma, obesity, pregnancy complications, cancer and cardiovascular disease. Research shows that environmental factors, such as water, air, metals, chemicals, food, housing, and geography contribute to these health outcomes. However, training is limited in how to ask informed research questions and design effective studies to evaluate differences in environmental health outcomes. To identify solutions, environmental health scientists must integrate and understand the multi-faceted drivers of environmentally-related diseases. We will address this training gap by coupling multi-disciplinary concepts with the use of appropriate epidemiologic, exposure assessment, and statistical analytic techniques that employ sociological constructs and theories for effective community environmental health research.
This two-day training will provide environmental health scientists with training in community environmental health research. The training’s multi-disciplinary approach will cover the steps involved in conducting informed, effective, and solution-driven community environmental health research. Our team consists of scientists with over 30 years of combined research in the fields of environmental health, sociology, epidemiology, health policy, community engagement, and biostatistics. Lectures will cover key concepts, frameworks, and methods for conducting community environmental health research. We will then build on this knowledge with hands-on learning experiences from case studies that allow participants to apply real-world datasets to address key research questions in environmental health and community health using exposure assessment techniques, epidemiologic methods, community-based participatory research, and analytic approaches, such as interaction and mediation.
By the end of the training, participants will be familiar with the following topics:
- Sociological constructs and theories relevant to environmental health
- Epidemiologic conceptual framework
- Study design advantages and challenges
- Data collection, questionnaire design, and measurement error
- Data analysis: basics of interaction and mediation
- Emerging topics and methods in community environmental health research
Audience and Requirements
Investigators from any institution and from all career stages are welcome to attend, and we particularly encourage trainees and early-stage investigators to participate. There are two requirements to attend this training:
- Basic familiarity with R is recommended to get the most out of the training. If you have not used this platform before or need a refresher, step through the tutorials outlined below so you have the basic skills needed for success.
- Each participant is required to have a personal laptop/computer and a free, basic Posit Cloud (formerly RStudio Cloud) account. All lab sessions will be done using Posit Cloud.
R Tutorials
As noted in the requirements above, knowing basic R platform and commands is recommended in order to get the most out of the training. If you are new to R or need a refresher, review the below tutorials to be well prepared for the labs:
- Posit Cloud (formerly RStudio Cloud) tutorial for training Prep: R Programming Tutorial - Learn the Basics
- Once you create your free, basic Posit Cloud account for the training: Primers on Programming Basics and Visualization Basics.
If you have any specific questions about R and R studio in the context of the Community Exposures and Health Training, please email us.
Instructors
Summer 2025 instructing team is being finalized, but will be comparable to the 2024 lineup below.
Training Co-Director: Joan Casey, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington.
Training Co-Director: Tamarra James-Todd, PhD, Mark and Catherine Winkler Associate Professor of Environmental Reproductive and Perinatal Epidemiology, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Gary Adamkiewicz, PhD, Associate Professor of Environmental Health and Exposure Disparities, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Andrea Bellavia, PhD, Lecturer, Department of Environmental Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and TIMI Study Group, Harvard Medical School.
Gaurab Basu, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and Director of Education and Policy at the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Kalya Murray, MA, Executive Director, Bethel Institute for Community Development.
Kari Nadeau, MD, PhD, John Rock Professor of Climate and Population Studies and Chair of the Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Natalie Slopen, ScD, Assistant Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Vernon K. Walker, MPP, MTS, Director of Content & External Strategy at the Robert Schalkenbach Foundation.
Scholarships
Professional Development SHARP Scholarships are available for the Community Exposures and Health Training. Please see the 2025 SHARP CEH Training Scholarship application form for more details on awards, eligibility criteria, the application process/timline, as well as how to submit your application. Note that a letter of recommendation submitted by your Mentor/Department Chair is required. The application deadline is May 9, 2025 at 11:59pm ET.
Only completed applications and recommendation letters submitted by the deadline will be reviewed. All questions should be directed to ColumbiaSHARP.Scholarships@gmail.com.
Location
Summer 2025: The Community Exposures and Health Training is a livestream, remote training that takes place over live, online video on August 12-13, 2025 from 11am EDT - ~5pm EDT. Please note this training is not a self-paced, pre-recorded online training.
Testimonials
"The workshop is a must for anyone doing analysis, research, or reporting on [community environmental health] efforts. The topics covered establish a good foundation for understanding [community environmental health] research and applying these approaches to topics outside of public health." - Fellow at NOAA, 2024
"A detail-packed two-days that provides critical foundational knowledge of [community environmental health] and its applications across environmental epidemiology. I am so grateful to have taken this course and to have the resources to revisit and reference to enhance my knowledge, research, and impact moving forward." - Faculty Member at Geisinger, 2024
"The training was an incredibly intense yet rewarding two-day experience. As someone new to the field, I greatly appreciated how the course began with fundamental concepts and progressed to practical, real-life applications. I gained a wealth of knowledge, both technical and theoretical. Beyond the valuable content, the course was a fantastic networking opportunity. The presenters were outstanding, engaging, knowledgeable, and responsive to all questions and concerns." - Postdoc at University of Minnesota, 2024
"I absolutely enjoyed the training. The topics spanned a wide range and were highly relevant, and the lectures insightful and stimulating. The boot camp was not solely tied to conceptual understanding - there are quantitative analysis sessions that also offer hands-on tutorials that allowed one to gain a more concrete and practical understanding of the procedures. I highly recommend it to all current and future [community environmental health] researchers and practitioners." - Postdoc at Columbia University, 2024
Additional Testimonials
"Excellent training on the past, present, and future of [community environmental health] research with participants and instructors from diverse disciplines and backgrounds. I would highly recommend this training for anyone who has been working in the [community environmental health] field for years, as well as those who are new to the field." - Faculty Member at Chapman University, 2023
"This course will teach you how to integrate [community environmental health] principles into your work. Whether you are interested in geospatial analyses, implementation science, causal inference, community-engaged research, or science communication this course has something for everyone." - Graduate Student Researcher at New York University Langone Health, 2023
"I absolutely enjoyed the training. I found all the topics really insightful. It was a great balance of [community environmental health] research and quantitative data analysis. Thank you." - Staff Member at Air Alliance Houston, 2023
"The training was indeed thought-provoking and ranks among the best I have attended in the past few years. This 2-day course covered all the topics I was hoping for, and even more that I had not anticipated. The instructors provided a step-by-step, hands-on tutorial on the thought process for identifying [community environmental health] questions and finding appropriate methods to address them. I was also impressed by an invited speaker's talk on how they have actively used their research to influence policies throughout their career." - Postdoc at Harvard Medical School, 2023
"Excellent review of [community environmental health] core concepts. Advanced my confidence in performing [community environmental health] relevant analyses!" - Student at the Department of Health, 2022
"The training gave a comprehensive overview of the history of the [community environmental health] movement and different approaches for performing [community environmental health] research. The topics cover almost every aspect of the process from finding a problem to implementing interventions while providing networking opportunities with classmates and experts in the field." - Staff Member at RTI International, 2022
"The training was a great crash course into [community environmental health] research. It provided excellent resources that I know I will continue to reference throughout my career." - Student at Vanderbilt University, 2022
"The training brought together an outstanding lineup of leaders and experts and provided a comprehensive overview of [community environmental health] concepts and methods for environmental health researchers." - Postdoc at the NIH, 2022
"Overall outstanding. An opportunity for new [community environmental health] scholars to meet researchers, practitioners, and activists at all stages of their careers. I have gained new resources and methods to bolster my [community environmental health] research." - Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt University, 2022
"I was amazed at how effectively the training covered both academic issues (i.e., methodological issues in quantitative [community environmental health] research) and translation, communication, and implementation. The training felt very grounded and as someone who is still very earl in my career, I came away feeling more knowledgeable about [community environmental health] research topics and methods and empowered to pursue research questions related to [community environmental health]." - Academic Staff Member at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 2021
"This was an invaluable experience to reorientate myself to the [community environmental health] field. I learned a lot about what tools and skills are being used and how to apply them from people at the forefront of the science." - Faculty member at DePaul University, 2021
"This workshop was an excellent opportunity to hear perspectives from a diverse group of researchers and learn practical tools and methods to apply to [community environmental health] projects." - Postdoc at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, 2021
"The variety of speakers, technical tutorials, and meet & greets was very well thought out." - Postdoc at University of California San Francisco, 2021
"I am new to [community environmental health] issues and this was a perfect foundational training that included an introduction to many different topics including the history of [community environmental health] and exposure science research, social determinants of health, and environmental racism. The training was organized with excellent speakers --- 100% recommend! I want to attend again!" - Postdoc at University of Pittsburgh, 2021
"Awesome training. This definitely shifted my perspective about data analysis for [community environmental health]." - Postdoc at NIH/NIEHS, 2021
"A delve into [community environmental health], including the social constructs behind it and hands on applications of analytical tools to consider [community environmental health]. A really practical and inspiring 2 day course course taught by leading experts in the field- highly recommended!" - Student at University of California, San Diego, 2021
"Amazing training! I feel like I came away with so many new and exciting ideas for my research and the resources to tackle the data in my research project in new ways." - Student at New York University, 2021
Registration Fees
| Early-Bird Rate (through 6/16/25)* | Regular Rate (6/17/25 - 8/5/25)* | Columbia Discount** | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Student/Postdoc/Trainee | $375 | $475 | 10% |
| Faculty/Academic Staff/Non-Profit Organizations/Government Agencies | $475 | $575 | 10% |
| Corporate/For-Profit Organizations | $675 | $775 | NA |
**Columbia Discount: This discount is valid for any active student, postdoc, staff, or faculty at Columbia University. If paying by credit card, use your Columbia email address during the registration process to automatically have the discount applied. If paying by internal transfer within Columbia, submit this Columbia Internal Transfer Request form to receive further instructions. Please note: filling out this form is not the same as registering for a training and does not guarantee a training seat.
*Mailman Alumni Discount: This discount is valid for any individual who graduated from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. To access the Mailman Alumni discount and receive a registration code, please email sharp_program@cumc.columbia.edu your graduation year and degree
Invoice Payment: If you would prefer to pay by invoice/check, please submit this Invoice Request form to receive further instructions. Please note: filling out this form is not the same as registering for a training and does not guarantee a training seat.
Registration Fee: This fee includes course material, which will be made available to all participants both during and after the conclusion of the training.
Cancellations: Cancellation notices must be received via email at least 30 days prior to the training start date in order to receive a full refund, minus a $75 administrative fee. Cancellation notices received via email 14-29 days prior to the training will receive a 75% refund, minus a $75 administrative fee. Please email your cancellation notice to ColumbiaSHARP.CEH@gmail.com. Due to workshop capacity and preparation, we regret that we are unable to refund registration fees for cancellations <14 days prior to the training.
If you are unable to attend the training, we encourage you to send a substitute within the same registration category. Please inform us of the substitute via email at least one week prior to the training to include them on attendee communications, updated registration forms, and materials. Should the substitute fall within a different registration category your credit card will be credited/charged respectively. Please email substitute inquiries to ColumbiaSHARP.CEH@gmail.com. In the event Columbia must cancel the event, your registration fee will be fully refunded.
Additional Information
- Register for Community Exposures and Health Training.
- Apply for a scholarship by May 9, 2025.
- Subscribe for updates on new Training details and registration deadlines.
- Contact the Training team.
The Community Exposures and Health Training is hosted by the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health's SHARP Program.
Jump to: Overview | Prerequisites | R tutorials | Instructors | Scholarships | Locations | Testimonials | Registration Fees | Additional Information