Tuesday, October 21, 2025, 4:00 to 5:30 PM
Air Pollution and Health: Scientific Promise and Public Policy Controversy
Hosted at the Wilkes Center for Climate Science & Policy (L. S. Skaggs Applied Science Building, Suite W1204)
Abstract:
An important promise of air pollution health science is that it supports evidence-based public policies aimed at safeguarding air quality and public health. Over the past several decades, evidence has accumulated indicating that air pollution is a major risk factor for disease and death. However, the work of air pollution science is not yet complete. It faces at least two sets of ongoing challenges. The first set of challenges includes methodological issues such as using and measuring real-world exposures and using observational data without experimental control. A second set of challenges relates to concerted efforts to cast doubt on scientific results that support public policies aimed at protecting air quality. The validity of environmental science is often challenged by characterizing it as “junk science”, “secret science”, or “advocacy science”. This presentation will address the progress of air pollution and health science in the context of these two ongoing sets of challenges.
Short Biography:
Arden Pope, III, is Professor of Economics and Karl G. Maeser Distinguished University Professor emeritus at Brigham Young University. He received a PhD from Iowa State University, was a Fellow at the Harvard School of Public Health, and an Honorary Fellow of the American College of Chest Physicians. He has conducted and collaborated on seminal studies on the health effects of air pollution including the early Geneva Steel studies, the Harvard Six-Cities and American Cancer Society studies, and many more. He has received multiple research and teaching awards, has advised numerous scientific boards and committees, and is one of the most highly cited air pollution researchers.
Book: Particles of Truth: A Story of Discovery, Controversy, and the Fight for Healthy Air
Recently, Dr. Pope co-authored a book with Douglas W. Dockery, Particles of Truth: A Story of Discovery, Controversy, and the Fight for Healthy Air (MIT Press, 2025). This landmark book presents the compelling story of air pollution science. It also addresses efforts to cast doubt on air pollution research and discredit public policy initiatives aimed at protecting air quality. Copies of the book will be available for signing and purchase. (Copies also available from or Amazon Books, etc.)
