Nicholas School and Duke Global Health Institute faculty member Bill Pan and colleagues led a group of Duke students through the Peruvian Amazon this past summer. The project involves a Bass Connections team of four faculty members, four graduate and professional students and three undergraduates studying the environmental and health impact of gold mining in the region.
One of the first projects to hit the ground in the Bass Connections program, the effort is an example of how the program aims to bring together faculty and students at all levels from across the university to address large societal issues through learning, research and engagement. In this project, one of six in the Bass Connections' global health theme, the research team seeks to better understand human vulnerability to heavy metal exposure and emerging infectious diseases in the Amazon.