Grants and Fellowships | 2014

15 University Centers of Excellence Hebrew University Center of Excellence in Agriculture and Environmental Health The Hebrew University Center of Excellence in Agriculture and Environmental Health was established in 2012 as a collaboration between the Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment and the Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, along with colleagues from the Ministry of Health. In Israel, where almost all arable land is currently intensively farmed and water resources are being over-utilized, the risks of exposures and adverse health effects from agricultural activities are high. Moreover, the risks are magnified because much of Israeli farming takes place in close proximity to population centers. This enhances the direct and indirect effects of agriculture on the surroundings municipalities. Israel is also unique and a pioneer in recycling wastewater for agriculture use. In order to overcome the shortage of water, Israeli agriculture relies heavily on reclaimed wastewater (i.e., treated effluents) as an important source of irrigation water. The Center’s mandate is to explore the interface between modern agricultural activity, environmental quality and human health through multidisciplinary research, dissemination and outreach. The consortium of environmental scientists and public health researchers aims to encourage multidisciplinary research activities, enhance public awareness, minimize the effects of agricultural activities on the environment, and better understand the consequences of agro-activities on human health. The Center’s current projects include:  Xenobiotics originating from reclaimedwastewater: Uptake by crops and exposure assessment  Bioaccumulation of endocrine disrupting chemicals by dairy cows via consumption of crops irrigated with reclaimed wastewater  Serum carbamazepine levels among healthy Israeli volunteers  Exposure of Israeli children to pesticides via food consumption  Exposure of pregnant women and their offspring to endocrine disrupting chemicals and organophosphate pesticides and associations with fetal growth and development of reproductive organs  Pesticide exposure and reproductive health outcomes in Palestinian and Israeli male residents of Jerusalem The Center’s activities benefit from the input of an international Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) comprising leading researchers in the fields of exposure science and environmental health:  Brenda Eskenazi, SAC Chair, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, USA  Shanna Swan, School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, USA  Baoshan Xing, Environmental & Soil Chemistry Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA  Leslie Stayner, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA  Yitzhak Hadar, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Hebrew University of Jerusalem Director Benny Chefetz Members Orly Manor Ora Paltiel Zvi Roth Ronit Calderon-Margalit Tamar Berman Hagai Levine Coordinator Yehoshua Maor