Asa Bradman, PhD, MS
Last fall on October 17 and 18, over 200 people gathered at UC Merced to participate in the San Joaquin Valley Center for Air Injustice Reduction (SJV-CAIR) Conference on Air Quality and Health. I organized this conference to create opportunities for community members, university researchers, students, and state and local government scientists to learn about air quality challenges in our region and talk about ways to solve them. There were over 50 presentations and posters, ranging from topics like California’s Bold Experiment with Community-Driven Air Governance to Mitigation for Liberation: Reducing Asthma in Our Neighborhoods. One highlight of the conference was a presentation by Nayamin Martinez, Executive Director of the Central California Environmental Justice Network. She spoke about air quality challenges and impacts in the San Joaquin Valley and introduced several videos chronicling the challenges residents face. Two family members also spoke personally about their struggles to get cleaner air to breathe. California Assembly Member Joaquin Arumbula (Fresno District 31) also spoke about air quality needs in the Valley and is committed to improving our environment. The conference was a resounding success and hopefully the first of many opportunities to understand and solve environmental health challenges in our region. One reason the meeting was so successful was the availability of funds to pay for travel for community members and staff from non-profits and simultaneous translation between English and Spanish.
