Biography:

Dr. James Crooks is an environmental epidemiologist, statistician, and associate professor at National Jewish Health, a respiratory research hospital in Denver, where he holds the rank of associate professor. Dr. Crooks earned his Ph.D. and M.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005 and 2006 and completed a 2 year post-doctoral fellowship at Duke University. Afterwards, he fulfilled a seven year stint as a scientist at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development. He then moved to National Jewish Health in 2015, and there has built a research program in air pollution health effects with a focus on climate-sensitive extreme events such as wildfires and dust storms.  He has authored 30 peer-reviewed publications, advised the U.S. embassy in Sarajevo on air quality in Bosnia and Hercegovina, and served on two EPA air pollution science review panels.  He currently co-directs the Program on Environmental Epigenetics at National Jewish Health and leads the Respiratory Disease and Air Pollution working group of the University of Colorado Consortium for Climate Change and Health, and works as a clinical assistant at the Colorado School of Public Health. Most importantly, he is a husband and father of two middle school aged boys.

Lesson One: warmer temperatures lengthen the pollen season, especially at more northern latitudes.

(click on the image to see the original paper by Ziska and Beggs)

Lesson Two: pollen plants grow faster in higher CO2 environments

(click on the image to see the original study by Ziska and Caulfield)

Lesson Three: plants produce more pollen grains in high CO2 environments.

(click on the image to see the original study by Ziska and Caulfield)

Lesson Four: higher levels of atmospheric ozone may fragment pollen grains, leading to release of more allergy-worsening particles

(click on the image to see the original study by Rogerieux et al.)

Individual and Local-Level Actions:

• walk, ride your bike, take public transportation, drive an electric car. Reducing pollution from energy production and energy-intensive transportation is good for our health now. 

• eat meat in moderation, consume a plant-based diet.

• talk to your friends, your family, your neighbors, and even random people on the bus about climate change. We need widespread action on climate change, but we cannot do so until it is on everyone’s radar.

• talk to scientists!

State-Level Actions:

• provide your input during rule making by the Public Utility Commission (PUC). An e-form to submit public comments is available here, and more information about the PUC is linked here and in the shownotes.

• engage with your elected officials in the state legislature. Advocate for and testify on behalf of bills that affect air quality in Colorado. The legislative session occurs in the first half of each year, but you can search for state bills anytime at this link here.

National-Level Actions:

• make your voice heard during Environmental Protection Agency public comment periods. You can search for dockets open for public comment at this link here, or at the link in the show notes. Remember, writing your own letter is more powerful than submitting a form letter… but submitting a form letter is more powerful than doing nothing. (As an aside, EPA regulations actually work! Do you stay up at night worrying about airborne lead? Didn’t think so.)

• get involved with a climate change and/or air quality advocacy organization and influence policy in Washington. If you are interested in learning more about these groups, check out the U.S. Climate Action Network’s lengthy list of member organizations here.