Children's Environmental Health Institute (CEHI) has been
established to identify, validate and develop solutions
to address adverse health effects to children occurring
as a consequence of exposure to hazardous environmental
The Children's Environmental Health Institute
P.O. Box 50342
Austin, Texas 78763-0342
D. Fields, Executive Director
The mission of the Children's Environmental
Health Institute is to support initiatives to improve children's
environmental health with an emphasis on their microenvironment.
The goal of the Children's Environmental Health Institute
is to identify, develop and promote solutions to improve
children's environmental health through scientific research,
environmental education and public policy.
The following guiding principles direct the Institute's
efforts to improve children's health.
long-term health of our children is our most important
asset and requires investment in the development of
policy, research and education for our nation's prosperity.
The health of children should be the country's top priority.
Healthy children without harmful substance residues
in their bodies will grow into healthy adults.
hazards and pollution know no physical boundaries. The
health of the world's children is intrinsically linked
to the health of our environment. Strategic collaboration
must be sought and encouraged whenever possible.
to complex environmental health problems require the
ongoing communication and collaboration of affected
communities and many disciplines including science,
medicine, public health, economics, planning and public
policy. Creative solutions can be reached through interdisciplinary
scientific problem-solving and private-public sector
complex environmental problems require unique and ongoing
communication and collaboration of many of the same disciplines
concerned with macroenvironmental issues such as science,
medicine, public health, economics, planning and public
policy. However, their focus on the microenvironment will
require the development of new technology and public-private
sector initiatives in children's health.
persons have a right to health, including a safe environment
and protection from exposures that may undermine their health.
For infants and children, who cannot act on their own behalf,
a special obligation is incurred.
Children are more vulnerable than adults to environmental
exposures. Children, beginning at the fetal stage and
continuing through adolescence, are physiologically
very different from adults. They are in a dynamic state
of growth, with cells multiplying and organ systems
developing at a rapid rate. At birth their nervous,
respiratory, reproductive and immune systems are not
yet fully developed. Our understanding of children's
vulnerability to toxic substances is complicated because
the degree of vulnerability varies with age and developmental
Young children breathe more rapidly and take in more
air in proportion to their body weight than adults.
They also have higher metabolic rates and a higher proportionate
intake of food and liquid than adults. The average
infant's daily consumption of six ounces of liquid per
kilogram of body weight is equivalent to an adult male
drinking 50 eight-ounce glasses of liquid a day.
Exposure to risks for children is substantially different
than for adults. At the present time, most food sampling
for pesticide contaminants in the United States focuses
almost exclusively on the diets of adults. In addition,
children are growing and making cells and toxicants
can become incorporated into their cells, whereas adults
are usually losing cells. Research and public education
should be viewed within that context.
Children are exposed to a variety of environmental
hazards, including indoor and outdoor air pollution,
solvents, pesticides, lead, mercury and other heavy
metals. These contribute to certain childhood diseases,
such as asthma leukemia and to some learning disabilities.
The impact of increased exposure to adverse environmental
factors must be considered as a contributor to the observed
increase in health problems.
The key to protection is prevention. Recently, children's
environmental health issues have been recognized by
Congress and federal agencies. In November 1996, the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released
a report, “Environmental Health Threats to Children,”
and announced that for the first time children would
be considered in all EPA risk-assessment and standard-setting
procedures. Congress passed the Food Quality Protection
Act in September 1996, which specifically focuses on
setting standards to protect children from pesticide
residues and other hazards in foods.
- Fernando Guerra, MD, CEHI Chair, Director of Health, San Antonio Metropolitan Health District, San Antonio, Texas
- Valerie Davis, BJ, Principal and CEO, EnviroMedia Social Marketing, Austin, Texas
- Donald J. Dudley, M.D., Professor and Vice Chair for Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
- Martin Lorin, MD, Professor, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas
- Kenneth Olden, Ph.D., Sc.D., I.H.D., Director Emeritus, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Founding Dean, School of Public Health, Hunter College, City University of New York
- Katherine Stalzer, BSN, RN, Secretary, On-site Quality Management Specialist, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, Austin, Texas
- Vincent Torres, MSE, PE, MAC, Center for Energy & Environment, The University of Texas at Austin
- Mike Wells, AIA, Vice Chair, Principal, The Early Childhood Studio, Dallas, Texas
- Dave Wolf, BSEE, MD, NASA Astronaut, Houston, Texas
- CEHI Executive Staff, Janie Fields, MPA, Executive Director, Austin, Texas
Children's Environmental Health Institute provides leadership
through dedicated, caring and experienced professional
staff with a strong desire to succeed in the organization's
Executive Director Janie D. Fields holds
a Masters in Public Administration. Ms. Fields served for 14 years as the Executive
Director of the Children's Trust Fund of Texas and as a
past president of the National Alliance of Children's Trust
and Prevention Funds. Fields has extensive background experience
in public administration and policy development.
volunteer spirit is a matter of history. The time-honored
tradition of neighbor helping neighbor is the foundation
upon which this country was built. Volunteer support is
the cornerstone of the Children's Environmental Health Institute. Current positions are posted on www.volunteermatch.org
wishes to express its gratitude to the following organizations
for their support and encouragement of our initiatives to
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas
- Broadfield Foundation
- Cielo Wind Power
for Disease Control
- Clean Water Pipe Council
Colorado River Authority
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
for Social Responsibility
Public Center for Environmental Health
- Habitat Suites
- RGK Foundation
- Richard S. Reynolds Foundation
- Saint Susie Foundation
- Special Audience Marketing
- Shield-Ayers Foundation
- Southwest Center for Pediatric Environmental Health
Medical Association Foundation
- Thomas J. Reinhart Foundation
- Whitley Printing Company
Children's Environmental Health Institute hopes you will
accept the invitation to support its unique mission that
will address the common problems confronting future
generations of the environment.