Air pollution varies both geographically and temporally, and is comprised a mixture of different compounds arising from a range of different sources. I am interested in investigating the chemical and physical components of air pollution that are found throughout the world, and identifying which parts are most causative to the 7 - 8 million global deaths per year. As an atm ospheric chemist, I am trained to investigate this complexity with sound measurements that are consistent with gold standard approache s. As a practicing environmental health scientist, I use this information to inform policy that is protective of human health. My skillset is intentionally interdisciplinary and is adaptable to different parts of the world.

Air pollution is not monolithic – that is, it is quite different in each part of the world. As a result, its impact on human health is also varied, and this makes assessment of this problem necessarily localized, because of the different environmental and political conditions within each nation or region. Poor air quality in Delhi is caused by very different processes, and has very different public health impacts, then, for example, air quality in Paris or Accra. In each case, a unique solution may be required to control poor air quality or provide ameliorative solutions for its people. It is this diversity, and the challenge to devise equally diverse solutions to mitigate it, that appeals to me as a global health scientist.