SPHHS Dean Lynn Goldman receives award for reducing pediatric exposure to pesticides.
Lynn Goldman, dean of GW’s School of Public Health and Health Services, is being honored for her work to protect children from toxic chemicals.
Dr. Goldman, a pediatrician and epidemiologist, is one of nine recipients this year to receive a Heinz Award, which is given to individuals who are addressing global change caused by the impact of human activities and natural processes on the environment.
“Several hazardous pesticides have been removed or restricted thanks to Dr. Goldman,” says Teresa Heinz, chairman of the Heinz Family Foundation. “She has been instrumental in securing reforms that limit pesticides in children’s food resulting in lowering their accumulation in children’s bodies.”
The Heinz Awards, in their 16th year, honor the late U.S. Senator John Heinz’s longstanding commitment to the environment.
During her pediatric residency, Dr. Goldman treated children with preventable infectious diseases and lead poisoning. This inspired her to research and develop programs to stop negative health effects caused by chemical contaminants.
“I have witnessed far too many children with preventable diseases,” says Dr. Goldman. “A call for regulation against potentially dangerous chemicals is critical to providing what every child is entitled to – nutritious food and a healthy environment.”
Before coming to GW, Dr. Goldman was a professor at the Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Environmental Protection Agency’s assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention.
Throughout her career, Dr. Goldman has advanced policies and public understanding of toxic chemicals. She worked to strengthen the Food Quality Protection Act and expand citizens’ “right to know” about pollution in their community. These efforts led to the testing and discontinuation or limitations of a number of toxic chemicals in household, food and various other products.
Dr. Goldman has testified before Congress on several occasions, co-authored a report for the World Bank describing the impact of toxic substances in developing countries and conducted research on how chemicals affect newborn children.
Nominations for the Heinz Awards are submitted by invited experts, who serve anonymously. Award recipients are then selected by the board of directors for the Heinz Awards. In addition to the $100,000 award, recipients are presented with a medallion inscribed with the image of Senator Heinz on one side and a rendering of a globe passing between two hands on the other.
The Heinz Award will be presented during a ceremony Nov. 15 in Washington, D.C.