“Finding solutions motivates me”
Claire Horwell is an air pollution scientist and Professor of Geohealth at Durham University.
Claire Horwell is an air pollution scientist and Professor of Geohealth at Durham University (© Durham University)
Tell us about your research
I work on the hazards and impacts of air pollution. For many years I focused on volcanoes and how communities are affected by volcanic emissions but, in recent years, I’ve broadened out to look at different types of air pollution, including urban air pollution. I do this in an interdisciplinary way, combining Earth sciences, exposure sciences, different aspects of medicine and public health, social research, and even branching into ethics and law.
What are you working on?
I’m running a three-year consortium project based in Nepal and Indonesia. We’re focusing on how to protect children from urban air pollution by researching face masks, particularly the suitability of the best type of face mask, which is called a respirator. You’ve likely heard of N95 or FFP2 masks from the Covid pandemic; these are the ones that are certified to a high level of protection, and we are investigating whether respirators marketed for children are effective.
Tell us about volcanic health hazards
During my PhD, I became interested in whether and how volcanic ash was toxic for humans to inhale. I used geochemical techniques to understand not just what the ash was made of, but what was happening on its surface that would make it reactive in the human lungs. We have great systems in our body for getting rid of particles in our lungs, but sometimes, depending on what the particle is made of, the surface reactivity could trigger lung diseases. In the short term, volcanic ash can cause coughs and sore throats from irritation of the respiratory system. My research focused on whether ash can cause more serious, long-term problems. The good news is that we don’t see huge outbreaks of lung disease in the decades following eruptions and I’ve been exploring some theories to explain this. I also founded the International Volcanic Health Hazard Network, which advises governments on preparing their health response to eruptions and disseminates information to help communities protect themselves during eruptions.
What’s your favourite thing about your research?
Having an impact. At the end of the day, the aim of my research is to improve people’s lives and make a difference – that is what drives me every single day. If my work results in public guidance that helps to save lives or improve people’s wellbeing during an air pollution crisis, that drives my satisfaction and encourages me to carry on. Governments around the world are trying to reduce emissions from anthropogenic pollutants but it’s a slow process. When you visit these countries, you see what a huge task improving the air quality will be. People may have no choice but to live in that environment so finding solutions to protect people in the meantime motivates me.
What advice would you give to someone interested in joining the field?
Be prepared to immerse yourself in several different disciplines and surround yourself with colleagues and mentors who have been through that process. Take time to train yourself across the different disciplines that you want to combine because this will help your understanding in the long term. The field of geohealth has grown immeasurably since I started out and has become an international discipline. While volcanic health is still quite a small field, environmental health, geohealth, and medical geology are now far larger and there’s a great community to engage with. The American Geophysical Union has a GeoHealth section and early career network.
Listen to the full conversation in this episode of 5 Minutes With Claire Horwell
