Toxic aftermath of 9/11 is focus of all-day conference

NEW PALTZ — The State University of New York at New Paltz and The Lower Manhattan Public Health Project will sponsor a free, all-day conference, titled “The Toxic Aftermath of 9/11: An Emerging Health Crisis,” beginning at 10 a.m. on Monday, June 12, in Lecture Center 100.

The conference will focus on research by individuals and organizations to understand illnesses emerging from 9/11 in an effort to help the residents of New York City and emergency services personnel get answers, benefits and treatment.

Medical expert Dr. Stephen M. Levin, director of the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring Program, will present his findings. Other presenters include: David Worby, lawyer, Worby, Groner & Edelman, LLC, who represents more than 8,000 people affected by 9/11 in a federal law suit; Dr. Rebecca Bascom of Penn State Hershey Medical Center, who has studied the toxic effects of 9/11 within employees of the New York Police Department; and Dr. Christine Oliver of Harvard Medical School, director of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.

In addition, individuals with health problems associated with the toxic aftermath of 9/11 will share their stories and Alison Johnson will debut her documentary film, “The Toxic Clouds of 9/11: A Looming Health Disaster.” Johnson is a graduate of Carleton College, Minnesota, and studied mathematics at Paris-Sorbonne University on a National Science Foundation Fellowship. She received a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin, where she studied on a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship, and she is currently a freelance editor for university presses. Johnson is also the producer of “Gulf War Syndrome: Aftermath of a Toxic Battlefield,” which was used to educate politicians, along with Gulf War veterans, about the latest science in toxic injuries, lung injuries, chemical sensitivities and autoimmune disorders.

Donna Flayhan, Ph.D., is the director of The Lower Manhattan Public Health Project. She is an associate professor in the Communication and Media department at SUNY New Paltz and has worked in communication and public health research and on public health campaigns since 1990. Flayhan has conducted grant-funded research and directed health campaigns on tobacco use prevention programs, low-level carbon monoxide exposure, West Nile Virus and Gulf War Syndrome.

For more information, contact Flayhan at flayhand@newpaltz.edu or at (845) 679-2583. The Lower Manhattan Public Health Project is supported by two grants from SUNY New Paltz.