6/10/26: Introducing the Planetary Health Policy Research Accelerator (PRA)
The PRA serves as a research-to-policy accelerator, connecting Johns Hopkins researchers with opportunities to inform policy at local, national, and global levels.
A New Institute for Planetary Health at Johns Hopkins University
Planetary Health research has taught us that our dismantling of nature’s intricate and fragile web is an urgent threat to human health and wellbeing. “Environmental” problems—climate change; biodiversity loss; pollution of air, water, and soil; terrestrial and marine system degradation—are expanding at a pace and scale that demands urgent action and transformative innovation across nearly every dimension of human activity from food and energy systems to manufacturing and the built environment. The Institute for Planetary Health was created to build a bridge connecting JHU’s vibrant community of faculty, staff, and students to work together in accelerating discovery and activating solutions to safeguard health on a rapidly changing planet.
Learn More about the InstituteWhat does the Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health do?
The Institute is advancing Planetary Health research, education, policy, and practice across Johns Hopkins University. By bringing faculty and students together across disciplines and divisions to work on collaborative projects, the Institute will help the University play a lead role in moving the field of Planetary Health forward. We envision numerous workstreams as diverse as designing Planetary Health cities, working with the Indigenous health community to explore the intersections with Indigenous determinants of health, and working with nurses and physicians to green health care and communicate the Planetary Health emergency to patients, colleagues, and communities. In education, the Institute will help integrate Planetary Health competencies into nursing, medical, public health, and undergraduate curricula. Collaborations with the policy community at Hopkins and the engineering, AI, and data science communities will lead to innovations in policy, technology, and practice.
Learn MoreWhat does the Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health offer?
The Institute for Planetary Health removes obstacles to cross-disciplinary collaboration. We plan to offer support for workshops and convenings (including at the Hopkins Bloomberg Center in Washington DC), development of research proposals, new Planetary Health course development, and connection to the global Planetary Health community through the Planetary Health Alliance. In addition, we will organize monthly dinner seminars for affiliated faculty and special events and retreats on Planetary Health topics. Over time, we seek to provide seed grants for research and support for postdoctoral fellows connected to Planetary Health research hubs.
Learn More About Our ProgramsNews
6/1/26: JHIPH Year-Two Impact Report
We are delighted to present the second annual impact report of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health!
2/4/26: JHIPH Launches Community Survey
We would love to hear which Planetary Health engagement opportunities and program areas are most useful and interesting to our community.
10/7/25: Student-Led Sustainability Magazine Published
Students for Environmental Action (SEA) has officially released its Sustainability Magazine—now available to read digitally.
9/8/25: Introducing the New JHIPH Executive Director
We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Rachel Marcus back to the Johns Hopkins community as the new Executive Director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health (JHIPH) and the Planetary Health Alliance (PHA), housed at Hopkins Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C.
7/15/25: New Commentary Connecting Planetary Boundaries & Planetary Health
Experts from the Planetary Boundaries and Planetary Health communities have co-authored a new commentary in The Lancet, calling for a unified platform to address the human health impacts of Earth system changes.
Get Involved
As a member of our community, you’ll receive updates on the latest news, events, and insights related to the growing Planetary Health movement at Johns Hopkins University and beyond.
All faculty and staff leading programs, initiatives, or centers across any division of Johns Hopkins University are encouraged to become a JHIPH Affiliate.
Your participation and support make this vital work possible.
Engage With the Planetary Health Community
Connect with JHIPH through our online channels for updates, news, and opportunities to engage.
Apply for Funding Opportunities
Explore funding opportunities to support innovative Planetary Health research and solutions.
Tell Your Planetary Health Story
Fill out this form to share more about your Planetary Health journey, current work, and passions.
Highlights
10/22-23/26: Demographics and Planetary Health Convening
This invite-only convening aims to bring together ~170 attendees from academia, philanthropy, policy, and the media to establish a shared understanding of current demographic trends and their implication from multiple perspectives and to explore potential interventions to navigate our demographic future for the health and well-being of people and planet.
3/31/26: March 2026 Planetary Health Dinner Recap
In March, the Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health (JHIPH) partnered with NorthBay Education to host a dinner centered on Planetary Health's Healing Spaces: Education, Environment, and Equity in Youth Mental Health.
3/25/26: Infectious Disease Research Hub Symposium
This symposium will bring together researchers from across JHU and the broader scientific community to share recent findings on how Planetary Health influences infectious disease transmission, epidemiology, and intervention strategies.
Infectious Disease Research Hub Happy Hour
Please join JHIPH’s Infectious Disease Research Hub for an informal happy hour bringing together collaborators and colleagues interested in infectious disease, public health, and Planetary Health.
Air Quality Research Hub Happy Hour
Please join JHIPH’s Air Quality Research Hub for a series of informal happy hours bringing together collaborators and colleagues interested in air quality, environmental health, and Planetary Health.
11/18/25: November 2025 Planetary Health Dinner Recap
On November 18, the Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health (JHIPH) brought together some of Baltimore’s most dynamic community organizers engaged in addressing the CSX coal terminal, incinerator, and other environmental threats.