Faculty Profile
Jalonne L. White-Newsome, BS, MS, PhD (she/her)
Associate Professor, School of Environment and Sustainability
Affiliate Faculty, Erb Institute
Dr. Jalonne L. White-Newsome is a passionate advocate, policy expert and researcher that has worked across multiple sectors over the past 35 years to protect people and the environment by integrating values of environmental justice into policies and practices. Her current research portfolio includes two areas of interest: quantifying the financial and health impacts of recurrent household flooding and the process of recovery; and, examining ways to enhance corporate responsibility by integrating environmental justice into corporate policies and practices. Dr. White-Newsome employs methods from a variety of disciplines, including environmental health, social sciences, engineering, and environmental justice analysis. In previous roles, she served as the first Federal Chief Environmental Justice Officer at The White House in the Biden-Harris Administration and has been acknowledged as a national leader for her work. Dr. White-Newsome’s previous public health research – at the intersection of climate change, heat waves and environmental justice - specifically focused on the impacts of extreme heat on older adults.
Ph.D. Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, 6/2011
M.S. Environmental Engineering, Southern Methodist University, 6/2003
B.S. Chemical Engineering, Northwestern University, 6/1999
Certificate Diversity and Inclusion, Cornell University, 12/2020
- Environmental Justice
- Environmental Health Sciences
- Corporate Responsibility and Environmental Justice
- Flooding Impacts and Recovery
- Environmental Justice Policy: Measuring Impact and Analysis
Current Projects:
“Voices from the Frontlines: Living with Cumulative Environmental Impacts in Michigan Inclusive History Project (IHP) at the National Center for Institutional Diversity, 2026- 2027
June 2026: Blog: A prescription for resilience: Rebuilding trust between health systems and the communities they serve. https://us.noharm.org/news/prescription-resilience-rebuilding-trust-between-health-systems-and-communities-they-serve
White-Newsome, J.L., and J. Slay. 2022. "Learning to Lead With Equity: Advancing Climate Resilience Planning to Address Urban Flooding Across Multiple Sectors and Scales " In Justice in Climate Action Planning, edited by B. Petersen and H. Ducros. New York: Springer.
White-Newsome, JL. “A Climate Equity Agenda Informed by Community Brilliance.” Issues in Science and Technology (October 2021).
White-Newsome JL, Rest K. Climate Change and Public Health, ISBN 9780190202453. Chapter 15 Non-governmental Actions by Individuals, Civil Society Organizations, and the Private Sector. Oxford University Press, June 2015.
White-Newsome, Jalonne L., Brenda Ekwurzel, Mia Baer-Schultz, Kristie L. Ebi, Marie S. O’Neill, and G. Brooke Anderson. "Survey of County-Level Heat Preparedness and Response to the 2011 Summer Heat in 30 US States." Environ Health Perspect (2014).
White-Newsome JL, Brines SJ, Brown DG, Dvonch JT, Gronlund CJ, Zhang K, Oswald EM, 2013, Validating Satellite-Derived Land Surface Temperature with in-situ Measurements: A Public Health Perspective. O’Neill MS. Environ Health Perspect. doi:10.1289/ehp.1206176.
White-Newsome JL, Sanchez BN, Jolliet O, Zhang Z, Parker EA, Dvonch JT, O’Neill MS, 2011, Climate change and health: indoor heat exposure in vulnerable populations. Environ. Res. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2011.10.008.
Areas of Expertise: Environmental Health, Environmental Justice