2011 Member of the Year: Julia Campbell
July 13, Julia Campbell, Program Consultant with the Chemical Hazards Program was awarded "Environmentalist of the Year" by the Georgia Environmental Health Association (GEHA). GEHA is the state affiliate of the National Environmental Health Association
Each year one Environmental Health professional is awarded this prestigious honor from our peers during GEHA's annual education conference. The award is in recognition of service in Georgia and the winner is chosen among hundreds of GEHA members. Julia is very deserving as this year's recipient following many years of participation in GEHA as the Editorial Committee Chair, other volunteer activities for GEHA and in her community, and as a member of and speaker at the national association's annual conferences. As the Committee Chair for several years, Julia designs, writes articles and edits submissions for, and publishes on-line the journal "Georgia Environmentalist", the official publication of GEHA. In addition, Julia recently received local and national recognition as a DPH employee for organizing, collecting, and mulching over 2,400 abandoned tires in a northwest Atlanta neighborhood, for reuse in the community as decorative landscaping.
Achievements in the field of environmental health including management, research or educational activities.
Julia has covered many media outlets through her work with Brownfields Redevelopment and Health Impact Assessments in distressed communities. Her compassion, creativity, and tireless work with residents to clean up their neighborhood and improve health outcomes are appreciated by many. For example, Julia organized one community to work together with private industry, local businesses, homeowners, associations, elected officials, county health department staff, and residents to gather, recycle, mulch, color, and reuse over 2500 abandoned tires for ornamental landscape.
Julia has experience in both the Chemical Hazards Program, and traditional Environmental Health Programs including inspection of septic systems, private wells, and West Nile Virus outbreaks. Julia’s career in Environmental Health began in 2003 as an intern with the Chemical Hazards Program, and continued in 2004, as an Environmental Health Specialist with Gwinnett County. In 2005, Julia returned to the Chemical Hazards Program to continue technical writing, research, program development, implementation and evaluation, intern supervision, grants management, database development and management, GPS/GIS mapping, and community needs assessments. From 2008-2009, Julia conducted a brownfields project as Principle Investigator for a Brownfields Special Projects Grant. Julia presents at professional conferences, including at several NEHA conferences in recent years. She conducts training at the annual New Environmentalists’ Training, at colleges/universities, and for local elected officials and community groups.
While employed full time by the Georgia Division of Public Health, Julia is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Public Health from Georgia State University.
Awards and Recognition
2010, GEHA, Certificate of Meritorious Service
2009, Governor’s Commendation, “Excellence in Customer Service”, GDHR,
Environmental Health Branch
2008, “Best Health Assessor, 2007” ATSDR Cooperative Agreement, Chemical Hazards Program Staff
Community Service Activities
Habitat for Humanity, house building crew member
West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, depressed community landscape improvements
Georgia Rivers Alive, annual river cleanup and volunteer surveyor
Achievements and Activities within GEHA
Julia contributes to the Board of Directors of the Georgia Environmental Health Association as Chair of the Editorial Committee since 2006. Julia actively participates in GEHA Board of Directors’ meetings, and recruits college students/interns to serve as short-term Assistant Editors, promoting GEHA, helping to educate young adults and advance future careers and participation in Georgia Environmental Health.
In 2010 Julia applied for and was selected to receive the 2011 NEHA Sabbatical Award organized by GEHA’s past president, Robert Blake. She will study landfills and brownfields in a high precipitation/high groundwater table island environment and make comparisons between the American and British engineering, technology, regulations, and climate. NEHA awards one sabbatical each year nationwide. After a second application and several years of working with NEHA, winning this opportunity is very prestigious and she will present an excellent ambassador of Georgia Environmental Health internationally.
Julia is passionate about Georgia Environmental Health and the Georgia Environmental Health Association, and deserves to be named the GEHA “Environmentalist of the Year”.
NEHA Award
Julia Campbell was selected as the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA)/ Chartered Institute of Environmental Health/Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors Sabbatical Exchange Award recipient for 2011. Congratulations to Julia! The NEHA Sabbatical Exchange is a prestigious two to four week professional development opportunity to observe international environmental health practice policies and methods, and to share American expertise with professionals in Canada or Britain. Each year, one Environmental Health professional is selected from a nationwide pool of applicants.
Julia is a Program Consultant with the Chemical Hazards Program, Environmental Health Branch, Georgia Division of Public Health.
This fall, Julia will conduct the sabbatical for three weeks in Britain investigating landfills and brownfields in a high precipitation, high groundwater table, island environment. Brownfields are former industrial or business properties where redevelopment or reuse may be complicated by the presence of, or potential for, health hazards or toxic chemicals. They are often found in low-income neighborhoods, such as industrial areas of inner cities. London will host the next summer Olympics and there is an intensive and innovative brownfields redevelopment program underway.
Julia will study the migration of contaminants from landfills and brownfields, exposure pathways, and potential human health affects. Her study will examine a range of factors including soils, climate, remediation methods, environmental justice, community involvement, and the policy implications. She also plans to meet with Environmental Health Specialists in Britain and Scotland to learn about their approaches for addressing environmental health concerns. She will then compare the accumulated evidence with her experience involving similar problems in the United States. Ms. Campbell is expected to prepare a paper on her findings.
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