Research

Air pollution and climate change are two major global challenges, which have adverse effects on human health, linked by common anthropogenic and natural activities. Some air pollution activities, for example, wildfires, could be induced and amplified by climate change. On the other hand, air pollutants will affect the Earth’s radiation budget, and consequently, affect the climate. One key theme of my past and current research is estimating historical PM2.5 concentrations, their sectoral contributions, and their health impacts. We found that emissions from anthropogenic sources are decreasing over the past several decades, which demonstrates promising efforts to improve air quality. However, some natural sectors’ emissions are likely increasing due to the warming climate. My long-term research goal is to investigate the links between those “natural emission activities” and climate change.