Research summary
Concerns about toxic chemicals in the environment are not new—but they are growing as researchers increasingly link them to a list of human and wildlife health issues. As Canada Research Chair in Environmental Health Sciences, Dr. Niladri Basu aims to design, validate and apply innovative and sustainable ways to address concerns about these chemicals.
To do this, he and his research team are studying and integrating data across species in a comparative manner (for example, looking at humans versus wildlife). They are also scaling responses across multiple tiers of biological organization (for example, molecular versus individual versus ecosystems). This work is helping them develop the transdisciplinary research and communication skills they need to engage with environmental, social and biomedical scientists along with stakeholders from government, associations, communities and industry. Ultimately, their research will lead to more efficient and ethical ways to assess the risks posed by toxic chemicals and meet changing regulatory demands in Canada and worldwide.