Health and wellbeing
Site news
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Stanford researchers are working to help cities adapt to extreme weather and keep people and buildings cool during severe heat waves.
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Environmental chemist Nina Zhao seeks to understand the chemicals in our lives, and why people respond so differently to the same drug, pesticide, or pollutant.
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Stanford engineer Khalid Osman and collaborators are building modeling tools to help water system managers find the most cost-effective option for improving their community’s drinking water.
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As COVID-19 disrupted rural economies, communities living near protected rainforests faced rising uncertainty about jobs, health and basic needs.
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Some wildfire smoke plumes are more toxic than others, depending on the geology where a fire burns. Stanford scientist Scott Fendorf explains why.
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Stanford-led research shows how wildfire risks are changing, illuminates connections to climate and health, and offers promising solutions.
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Environmental microbiologist Yaochun Yu studies how microbes break down pesticides, plastic additives, and other chemicals in the environment. His goal is to enable new ways to clean up pollution and design safer chemicals for the future.
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In the 14 years after a new road was paved through a previously isolated portion of the Peruvian Amazon, cases of the world’s most rapidly expanding mosquito-borne disease skyrocketed in nearby communities.
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Electrification for Health is a new Stanford program that aims to accelerate the transition to safer, cleaner electric appliances to protect human health today and support sustainable energy for the future.
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Stanford environmental health scientist Tracey Woodruff discusses new research showing widespread exposure among pregnant women to common but understudied chemicals. She highlights what consumers and policymakers can do to protect public health.
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From Ebola to hantavirus, ecological disruptions are creating the conditions for more frequent and dangerous spillover events. Researchers say interdisciplinary collaboration and investment in early surveillance is essential to prevent and respond to these threats.
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The chronic disease schistosomiasis wreaks havoc on more than 220 million people around the world. New research shows how introducing fish into rice fields could help reduce disease incidence and poverty in a hot spot for the disease
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A Stanford-led study based on two decades of satellite data finds California could cut deadly pollution from wildfire smoke by 20% in active fire years by expanding use of prescribed fire in conifer forests each year.
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Stephanie Fischer, a PhD student in Earth system science at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability and a PhD minor in the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity at Stanford University, researches how identity and culture can not only help people get involved in climate action but also buffer against harm.
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From studying the economic aftermath of cyclones to understanding innovative approaches to crop planting schedules, five researchers represent a new wave of climate progress.
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Researchers discovered high levels of benzene in domestic gas in multiple Western European cities. Exposure through commonplace gas leaks reaches levels that breach safe limits for many residents, new measurement and modeling suggests.
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New research traces a direct line from warmer, wetter weather to a mosquito-bornedisease epidemic. The findings could help inform policy and interventions to blunt such outbreaks.
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Environmental law expert Deborah Sivas discusses what the repeal could mean for the future of federal climate regulation, how it may fare in the courts, and why it could signal a broader unraveling of environmental protections.
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Researchers have mapped relative levels of human well-being and development for thousands of municipalities around the world. The new approach could help fill gaps in census data and inform decisions about how to tailor policies and programs to local needs.
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Schistosomiasis infects millions of people each year. Researchers at Stanford and in Senegal are working to reduce disease transmission in rice paddies, make food systems more productive and sustainable, and boost local economies – with the help of fish.
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The 2026 Stanford Global and Planetary Health Research Convening brought scholars together to discuss solutions and strategies to address health challenges and build resilience.
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An ambitious initiative is tackling the pervasive issue of lead contamination, which exerts a heavy toll on global health. Researchers aim to identify major sources of lead exposure and develop affordable detection methods in communities worldwide.
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Gas and propane stoves emit substantial amounts of nitrogen dioxide, a pollutant linked to higher risks of asthma, heart and lung disease, and other conditions. A Stanford-led study finds switching from a gas to electric stove would cut nitrogen dioxide exposure across the U.S. by over one half, reducing the risk of asthma.
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Using wearable device data from 53 U.S. cities, Stanford University researchers show that access to nature is linked to increased physical activity in urban communities.
