NEHA NEWS
What this change means to our membership is that you will be able to easily access all content in the JEH through our website at www.neha.org/jeh. You will no longer need to save emails or links from us for each issue or have to get the issue via our online store or contact us for those links. As a member, you will receive notification from us when a new issue is posted, allowing you first access to the content. We are also working on getting our back issues from 2015 to the present posted on our website for easy access for all. Furthermore, we are currently exploring website options to present and index our content for easier searchability for members and environmen- tal health professionals across the globe. On a broader scale, going open access with the JEH creates greater visibility and impact for our authors, columnists, advertis- ers, partners, and the workforce as a whole. It also creates equi- table access for all to the environmental health research and con- tent we publish, which can further our profession, ourselves, and our organization. If you have any questions about this transition, please email jeh@neha.org. NEHA Sta Profiles As part of tradition, we feature new sta members in the JEH around the time of their 1-year anniversary. These profiles give you an opportunity to get to know our sta better and to learn more about the great programs and activities going on in your associa- tion. This month we are pleased to introduce you to three NEHA sta members. Contact information for all NEHA sta can be found on pages 44 and 45. Nicole Dutra My adventure with NEHA began in January 2023 as a senior project coordi- nator for the Program and Partnership Development (PPD) team. Since join- ing NEHA, I have grasped every oppor- tunity to learn about the di erent fields of environmental public health. I have also become intrigued by the workforce behind each of the fields and the passion and dedication to mitigate hazards that a ect all of us, which is the same reason I am here. I earned a bachelor of art in global health, with summa cum laude honors, from Arizona State University, which was the turn- ing point in my life. I was so captivated by everything I learned from the impacts of climate change on our oceans to the concept of how globalization in poverty-stricken countries a ected public health for the worse. On the day of graduation, I remember tell- ing my father that I was going to apply to graduate school, but to only one school. I achieved my master of public health (MPH) from the University of California, Berkeley.
Before joining NEHA, I was the youth tobacco prevention coor- dinator in the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health. It was a challenging role, to say the least. Before that, I held the role of community outreach case manager for Catholic Charities of Northern Nevada, which was an eye-opening and heartfelt role with the responsibility to engage communities and individuals suf- fering from every inequity possible, including health disparities caused by socioeconomic and environmental challenges. Before I entered the realm of public health, I worked in the retail industry for more than 19 years as a store operations manager. I worked the last 7 of these years working at Starbucks Co ee Company. I have a diverse plate of projects at NEHA. In the realm of food safety, I manage our collaborative National Environmental Assess- ment Reporting System (NEARS) support, Integrated Foodborne Outbreak Response and Management (InFORM), and Epi-Ready projects. I have the pleasure of coordinating our Grand Rounds Sem- inars for environmental public health undergraduate and graduate students and workforce professionals to increase knowledge, aware- ness, and interest across the di erent fields of environmental public health to build capacity in the workforce. I am also privileged to be an administrator, providing support and technical assistance, to multiple NEHA program committees for di erent topic areas includ- ing vector control, informatics, food safety, rural and frontier juris- diction, and private water and septic systems. Working with all these program committees is definitely a highlight. Currently, I am in the process of starting to work on our Safe Water projects, the Private Water Network, and the Rural Community Assistance Partnership, which will be a boosting addition to my portfolio. I grew up and lived most of my years in San Jose, California. I played soccer, threw the discus and shot put for track and field, and ran cross county. I was and still am up for a challenge and I love to compete. I now live in Reno, Nevada, with my two sons, Gabriel and Nathaniel, who are both highly skilled golfers. I am a self-taught quilter and love to make quilts for family and friends on my mom’s 1970 Sears Kenmore sewing machine. I love listening to music and singing along, going for long drives, and the ocean and space (it is all still such a mystery).
Somara Mentley I joined NEHA in January 2023 as a proj- ect coordinator for the PPD team. As a project coordinator, I work to develop and complete tasks to meet project deliv- erables; communicate and build relation- ships with di erent partners; and facili- tate conference calls, meetings, and work groups. My favorite parts of my current role are the endless opportunities to
learn and grow as an environmental public health professional and the opportunity to implement the trainings I worked to develop in places such as Palau, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
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January/February 2024 • Journal of Environmental Health
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