Omnia Podcast

Concerns over lead poisoning were heightened in the U.S. after the contamination of a city water supply in Flint, Michigan. In Philadelphia and southeastern Pennsylvania, rates of lead exposure in children are high—especially in low-income communities. Thanks to a Making a Difference in Diverse Communities grant from Penn Arts and Sciences, a team of researchers and students led by Reto Gieré and Richard Pepino of Earth and Environmental Science is educating local communities about the dangers of lead poisoning, collecting important data necessary to inform remediation efforts, and working with the city and other partners to reduce lead exposure and address environmental justice issues. They discuss the project and offer their insights on the risks of lead exposure in Philadelphia and possible remediation efforts to reduce these risks. We also speak with Tabeen Hosain, C'17, a philosophy, politics and economics major, who is leading a team of students collecting data on lead levels in soil. They're also worki