# Research Project

> **NIH NIH P20** · HARVARD UNIVERSITY D/B/A HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH · 2024 · $379,549

## Abstract

The increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, such as heat waves, is disproportionately
impacting the health of racial/ethnic minority and low-income populations. There is an urgent need to develop
climate-smart solutions for heat stress in marginalized communities, addressing both direct effects on health
(e.g., death, heat stress) and indirect impacts on food and water supplies. To meet this need, the Center for
Climate: Equitable and Accessible Research-based Testing for Health (C-EARTH) will use a community-
centered approach to combat heat stress, recognizing that locally tailored, culturally appropriate climate-smart
solutions are essential for sustainability. Our research project will assess the impact of heat stress on
vulnerable populations in three distinct settings at established partner locations. Each site addresses the
escalating heat-related health impacts of climate change on a different scale: Boston focuses on individuals,
Madagascar focuses on small communities in rural, remote zones, and South Africa focuses on households in
urban built environments. At each project site, we will analyze associations between heat exposure and heat
stress and other heat-related health outcomes, utilizing a standardized questionnaire across all sites. Then, in
close partnership with community organizations at each site, we will implement and test cooling solutions that
promote resilience to heat stress for the most vulnerable members of these communities through intervention
studies and cohort-controlled research. For the intervention studies, we will address the following aims: 1)
determine whether educational resources and a cooling solution in 100 subjects improves health and thermal
condition outcomes for high-risk older adults with chronic disease and material hardships in Boston; 2)
evaluate the feasibility, use, and health impact of cooling centers with HEPA filters and freezers for fish storage
in four communities in Madagascar; and 3) determine whether a passive housing cooling solution improves
indoor temperatures and health outcomes in a subset of 32 households in South Africa. Together with our core
teams, we will implement these solutions with community partners, evaluate their effectiveness, and develop
methods to translate our findings towards policy. The breadth of cultural systems, ecological zones, and
economic vulnerability of our three sites will ensure a diversity of settings for generalizing and scaling
successful interventions. If successful, we will be able to scale this approach from individuals to national levels,
enhancing climate resilience and health equity.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10982801
- **Project number:** 1P20TW013028-01
- **Recipient organization:** HARVARD UNIVERSITY D/B/A HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
- **Principal Investigator:** Christopher DeWeir Golden
- **Activity code:** P20 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $379,549
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-09-23 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10982801

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10982801, Research Project (1P20TW013028-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10982801. Licensed CC0.

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