Authors: Randolph Singh, Gary Miller, Winston Thompson, Charles Easley
In July, the fifth annual Frontiers in Environmental Science and Health (FrESH) Program took place at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia, and was led by Co- Directors Dr. Winston Thompson, Morehouse School of Medicine, and Dr. Charles Easley, University of Georgia. The seven-day training program featured in-person lectures, trainee-guided problem-based learning, small discussions, and innovative laboratory courses, which were led by over twenty faculty members from the field of environmental health sciences.
The FrESH Program is an innovative, advanced program that seeks to train and mentor promising graduate students, medical students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty in environmental health science research, emphasizing how the environment impacts human health. What makes the program different is that the laboratories and lectures focus on EHS concerns that impact underserved communities, along with the conceptual, hands-on research education and skills development to recruit and prepare future trainees in environmental health science fields.
This year’s program featured key themes including dietary and pollution impacts on human health, novel methodologies for assessing environmental impacts on human health, and exposomics. Among this year’s lecturers was NEXUS MPI Dr. Gary Miller, Columbia University School of Public Health. Dr. Miller presented about the field of exposomics and studying the environmental drivers of disease.
Two years ago, FrESH leadership awarded Dr. Gary Miller with the Pioneer Award for his outstanding and pioneering work in exposomics. NEXUS Investigator Dr. Randolph Singh, Columbia University School of Public Health, also provided a lecture about how high-resolution mass spectrometry can be leveraged to understand known and unknown chemical exposures. A laboratory session was then held to help participants become familiar with open software and resources that can be used for identifying small organic chemicals.
NEXUS and FrESH continue to strengthen their collaboration through shared efforts to advance exposomics research and education. Dr. Miller, Dr. Singh, and NEXUS Investigator Dr. Dean Jones presented at the 2025 FrESH Program, where exposomics was a featured area of the curriculum. In addition, FrESH Co-Director Dr. Thompson is also a member of the NEXUS Collaborative Hub, further reinforcing the collaboration between the two initiatives. NEXUS looks forward to continuing this partnership and supporting the growth of exposomics education in future FrESH programs.
Learn more about the program: https://www.msm.edu/Research/FrESH/index.php
Read more about last year’s program: https://www.nexus-exposomics.org/news/FrESH_2025.html
