Tuesday, October 14, 2025 at 4:00 PM until 5:30 PMPacific Daylight Time UTC -07:00
Join Whitman alumni, parents and friends for a virtual program with Associate Professor of Sociology Alissa Cordner, sharing findings from her research with wildland firefighters. As wildland fires become more frequent and destructive, firefighter safety and public health are increasingly at risk. A century of aggressive fire suppression, growing developments in the wildland-urban interface, and a hotter and drier climate have combined to increase the risks from large, rapidly growing wildfires. Breathing in smoke from fires, nearby or half a continent away, can impact people’s health. And many of the policies that are intended to keep wildland firefighters safe were developed decades ago, when “megafires” and dramatic resource shortages were less common. What can a public health approach teach us about wildland fire? Since 2015, Dr. Cordner has worked with wildland firefighters to understand how they experience and understand the risks of their job. She will draw on examples from her research to describe the environmental and health hazards firefighters experience. Dr. Cordner will describe how the current presence of public and environmental health in Whitman’s curriculum, and she will introduce plans for a new Public Health Program for future Whitman students. ️ Kindly RSVP by Monday, October 13th. You will receive the Zoom link for this event in a confirmation email.
Registration is no longer available because the registration deadline has passed.