| Time | to Add to Calendar 2021-10-25 09:00:00 2021-10-26 16:00:00 29th Annual National Symposium on Family Issues Virtual (times listed are in Eastern Time) Population Research Institute css7@psu.edu America/New_York public |
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| Location | Virtual (times listed are in Eastern Time) |
| Description |
Environmental Impacts on Families: Change, Challenge, and Adaptation Families are embedded in larger contexts that have implications for family relationships and well-being. A large body of research by family scholars has documented the impacts of multiple dimensions of the broader social environment−including cultural, economic, and political contexts−on family functioning. Less attention has been paid to how dimensions of the physical environment may affect families, including factors that protect families and promote their resilience in the face of change and challenge. Toward stimulating novel interdisciplinary and translational research on families, the 2021 National Symposium on Family Issues examined the role of the physical environment in family relationships, behaviors, and well-being, with a focus on three key dimensions: environmental disasters, climate change, and the built environment. Book Citation  Ortiz, S. E., McHale, S. M., King, V., & Glick, J. E. (Eds.). (2023). Environmental impacts on families: Change, challenge, and adaptation. Springer Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-22649-6 Enviromental Impacts on Families is the part of the National Symposium on Family Issues book series. The book and individual chapters are available through Springer Link and your university library. Monday, October 25, 2021 Session 1: Environmental Disasters
Moderator: Alexis Santos, Assistant Professor of Human Development & Family Studies and Demography, Penn State Session 2: Climate Change The session addressed the intersection of environmental conditions, socioeconomic disparities, and community resilience that is shaping new realities for and constraints on families. Speakers advanced understanding of how environmental change impacts maternal and child health, family functioning, and adaptation across diverse communities around the world. Speakers considered ways in which climate change has altered family life and opportunities as well as issues of environmental justice.
Moderator: Heather F. Randell, Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology and Demography, Penn State Tuesday, October 26, 2021 Session 3: The Built Environment
Moderator: Selena E. Ortiz, Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Administration and Demography, Penn State Symposium Sponsors The Symposium on Family Issues is sponsored annually by The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R13 HD048150) along with Penn State’s Population Research Institute and Social Science Research Institute. Also see: |
| Contact Person | Carolyn Scott |
| Contact Email | css7@psu.edu |
| Event Type |
The first session focused on the social, demographic, and health impacts of environmental disasters such as hurricanes and tsunamis, on communities, families, and children. A focus was on the role of individual and community resilience in long-term recovery from disasters. Speakers also addressed the role of government programs and policies in helping individuals adapt, and the efficacy of evidence-based interventions in post-disaster contexts.
This session focused on the ways in which dimensions of the built environment−from the proximal environment of homes to neighborhood and larger community environments−have effects on the health and well-being of youth and families. Speakers considered the ways in which features of home environments get under the skin to affect youth physical and mental health, how food access and physical activity opportunities in the community serve to promote youth and family health, and the effects of neighborhood development programs on reducing health disparities among children, adolescents, and families.