Climate change is imperiling our children’s health, security, and future.
At Capita, we are working to put young children at the center of the world’s climate change strategies and response plans, make parents the most effective advocates for such strategies, and incubate policy instruments and investments to support the development of climate-resistant childhoods.
Climate change is likely to have long-term and enduring impacts on child health, development, and flourishing. Extreme weather events, heat, and the effects of displacement and migration resulting from climate change will likely be major sources of toxic stress in the years ahead. This stress can alter the development of children’s brain architecture in ways that are likely to “impair memory, executive function, and decision-making in later life.” This negatively influences academic performance, health, relationship formation, and other long-term life outcomes.
Promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships in the early years of human development, fostering community and systems-level resilience, and building strong social connections around families with young children, alongside existing efforts to slow global warming will be key to promoting human flourishing in the climate-changed future ahead.
To support smart investments and policymaking on behalf of young children and pregnant women, join us for a public conversation to better understand the impacts of climate change on perinatal and pediatric health. What are the opportunities for policy and practice innovation at the nexus of the early years of human development and climate change?
Speakers
Gregory Wellenius, SCD is a Professor of Environmental Health in the School of Public Health at Boston University and Director of the School's new Center for Climate and Health. Dr. Wellenius is an epidemiologist and has published extensively on the effects of air pollution and extreme weather events on the health of people across the lifecourse. His team has made a number of notable contributions to our understanding of the health risks associated with air pollution, noise pollution, other features of our physical environment, and those posed by a changing climate. A key goal of his team's research is to provide the actionable scientific evidence needed to ensure that our communities are as resilient, sustainable, and healthy as possible, emphasizing the benefits to human health of climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts.
Before joining Boston University, Dr. Wellenius served as faculty and Director of Brown University's Center for Environmental Health and Technology and Elected Councilor of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology (ISEE). Dr. Wellenius is the 2019 recipient of the ISEE Tony McMichael Mid-Term Career Award and the 2018 recipient of the Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching from the Brown University School of Public Health.
Megha Agarwal is the Executive Director at The Monarch Foundation. She oversees foundation operations, The Bridge Project, and all portfolios – including Monarch’s pregnancy & early childhood grantmaking portfolio and its climate grantmaking and investment portfolios. She represents the foundation on the Steering Committee of the Early Childhood Partners NYC Collaborative, in the Early Childhood Funders Collaborative, and in the CREO Syndicate.
Prior to joining Monarch, Megha worked at McKinsey & Company where she primarily served social sector and philanthropic clients, as well as consumer and retail clients.
Megha graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BS from The Wharton School and a certificate degree in Public Policy, and is a current member of South Asian Ladies Unite to Empower (SALUTE).