Science over Politics- Pollen, Climate Change and Integrity with Dr. Lewis Ziska

Dr. Lewis Ziska, PhD is an extraordinary plant physiologist who joins me today to discuss pollen and allergens in our air. He had a 24 year career at the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service and is currently at the School of Public Health at Columbia University. He has contributed to International Panel on Climate Change reports with respect to food security as well as to National Climate Assessments regarding public health and air quality. His most recent book is: Agriculture, Climate Change and Food Security in the 21 st Century: Our Daily Bread. Listen to our discussion today about how climate change affects pollen. 

We also cover more recent science suggesting that climate change is changing the nutritional content of our food, and may be affecting food allergies as well. He also shared more about the political interference with science that forced him to decide to leave the USDA, a place where he has served under Republican and Democratic administrations. As someone who works as an ICU doctor on the COVID19 frontline, it was sadly familiar to hear the current Administration ignoring life-saving science to feed a simple political narrative.  As a climate scientist, he also discusses the zoonotic origins of COVID19 and what we can expect regarding future pandemics and how we can prepare as a society and scientific community. 

TLDL (To Long Didn't Listen)- Climate change is leading to more allergenic pollen, in greater amounts, for longer pollen seasons! Science saves lives! 

Want to Take Action? 

1- Twitchy Airways Club Members- see the post for this episode for ideas on adding up the costs of your allergies or asthma and how to use those to communicate the tangible costs of climate change. 

2- Share your knowledge gained from this episode with your family, aquaintances, and on social media.   

3- Consider donating to the National Resources Defense Council to work to mitigate damage from climate change and preserve clean air. 

4- Write a comment in the iTunes store or wherever you listen to encourage others to discover the podcast and learn more about healthy air. 

---------------------------- 

Visit episode post for more information and references, or go to airhealthourhealth.org. 

Follow and comment on Facebook page and Instagram. Record a question or comment on the Anchor podcast site or contact me via the website. 

-----------------------------