Georgetown’s Master of Science in Climate, Environment & Health is a full-time,10-month interdisciplinary program based in Washington, DC. Our climate and health masters curriculum empowers students to lead in environmental health and global health. By bridging the gap between climate change, health and environment, our graduates are uniquely equipped to mitigate these critical public health, climate change, and environmental degradation-related issues.
“A ruined planet cannot sustain human lives in good health. A healthy planet and healthy people are two sides of the same coin.”
Dr. Gina Green surveying a dump site in Samana, Dominican Republic. Taken as part of the Clean Cities, Blue Oceans USAID Project (conducted surveys in collaboration with Tetra Tech in 10 countries to determine pollutant sources in order to reduce plastic pollution in ocean ecosystems).
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Wyatt Williams participates in a Nature Conservancy and Chesapeake Bay Foundation initiative recycling oyster shells to repopulate oyster populations—vital filter feeders that help keep the bay’s waters clean.
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Kayayei (female head porters) in Accra, Ghana, face environmental, social, and health challenges—including harassment, poor living conditions, and limited healthcare access. This image highlights one of the populations central to MS-CEH Professor Jessica Kritz’s research on collaborative governance addressing social determinants of health. Photo: Still from “Women of Burden” by Case Creative.
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The 2018 Camp Fire, California’s deadliest wildfire, displaced over 52,000 residents and left long-lasting health and social impacts. Since 2021, Professor Jessica Kritz has supported local partners in Paradise Ridge with evidence-based consultation to strengthen community-led recovery and homelessness response efforts.
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Master the Intersection of Climate Change, Environment, and Health
As humans respond to climate change, these challenges increasingly occur at the intersection of the environment and human health. The driving force for this program design is the recognition that our future calls for leaders with foundational knowledge to understand these challenges and lead their resolution—grounded in Georgetown’s Jesuit values of service, social justice, and care for the whole person and planet.
A Georgetown Graduate Program Designed to Solve Our Greatest Public Health and Environmental Challenges
250,000Climate-Change-Related MortalityAdditional deaths projected annually from heat stress, malnutrition, malaria, and diarrheal disease.²
+85%Heat-Related MortalityIncrease in deaths among adults over 65 linked to rising temperatures since the 1990s.¹
7 millionAir Pollution DeathsPremature deaths annually caused by polluted air from fossil fuels and other sources.³
3 out of 4 peopleGlobal Water ScarcityLive in countries classified as water-insecure or critically water-insecure, increasing risks of waterborne disease, food scarcity, and sanitation challenges.⁴
48%Extreme Drought ExposureGlobal land area experiencing severe drought, compromising livelihoods, food and water security, and agriculture.¹
512 billionExtreme Heat ExposureLabor hours lost globally due to rising temperatures, reflecting growing health and economic risks.¹
Pursue a career in public health and climate change solutions in the heart of Washington, DC
Get a career advantage with a degree from a top-tier university that brings together environmental science with public health and the skills employers care about. You’ll work with world-class faculty while you take advantage of unmatched access to Washington, DC. Pursue solutions to the climate change-driven consequences to public health in the heart of where environmental and health decisions are made and solutions are shaped.
MS-CEH is an interdisciplinary program focused on cross-cutting theme. This program is the first of its kind to fully synthesize scientific, policy, and process methods across environment and health-related subject areas. Students will:
Science + SolutionsCombine rigorous environmental and health science with evidence-based process design so you can lead real-world interventions, not just analyze problems
Interdisciplinary TrainingIntegrate methods from science, public health, policy, economics, and design so you can solve complex problems across climate, environment, and health systems.
Leadership Grounded in EquityLearn to lead across sectors and work directly with communities on the frontlines of climate and health challenges so your solutions are inclusive, just, and impactful.
Accelerated & AppliedComplete an intensive, 10-month program that equips you with practical skills and real-world experience so you can make an immediate impact.
The complex challenges that lie at the intersection of environmental change and human health necessitate a versatile group of professionals. Backed by cutting-edge research and committed social engagement, this program equips students with scientific, process, policy, finance and project planning evidence and skills that are synthesized across the Environment & Health fields, with a lens of resolving complex public problems driven by a changing climate. Students are expected to finish this program equipped with the theoretical foundation and practical skills to address the detrimental health impacts of environmental change, with a particular focus on impacts to vulnerable frontline communities.
The essential and differentiating hallmark woven throughout the MS-CEH program is the deliberate focus on evidence-based process design, which brings together multi-stakeholder perspectives and coalesces a diverse array of viewpoints across sectors and disciplines. Students will be taught to lead stakeholders in designing collaborative, inclusive, and multifaceted solutions that take into account the multitude of viewpoints necessary to adapt and mitigate. By capitalizing on the synergies between the School of Health and the Earth Commons Institute for Environment & Sustainability, this program builds on a shared commitment to improving the human condition at the local, national, and global levels.
Core Competencies
The Master of Science in Climate, Environment & Health has five program-wide core competencies that students are expected to master over the course of the degree. Each competency is broken down into learning outcomes, which in turn involve mastery of knowledge, skills, and values in order to achieve a competency.
The School of Health addresses human health and well-being to understand the interconnections among the most challenging issues of our time, and to find solutions.
