Abdel Ghany, Jasmin

Climate x Health Seminar: University Strategy

22 September 2026 at 13.00 at Nuffield College

Join us for the second Climate x Health seminar! How can climate and health concerns be integrated into university strategies? We will explore this topic in a seminar taking place on 22 September at Nuffield College. We will kick off at 13.00 in the Lecture Theatre with flash talks from Tom Heel, Heidi Johansen-Berg, and Myles Wilkinson who will share their experience in championing sustainable university strategy. After that, we will have ample of time for discussion and for... scones and coffee. 🍰☕️

The seminar is part of the Oxford Climate Research Network, which you can sign up to here.

New preprint (19 August 2026)

The reach of violence: Infant health among diasporas in the United States during the onset of the 2023 Gaza War

Our new preprint (joint work with co-authors Emma Romell and Josh Wilde) is out. Does violence in the conflict zone have health consequences for diaspora communities abroad? While they are physically removed from the conflict zone they remain connected to affected communities through their origin.

A large body of research documents the harm that armed conflict inflicts on the health of populations in conflict zones. Yet if violence injures collectivities rather than only those who experience it directly, its health consequences should extend to those who identify with affected populations wherever they reside. We test this hypothesis by examining the effects of the October 7, 2023, attacks in Israel and the ensuing onset of the Gaza War on infant health in the United States among mothers born in Israel, the West Bank, and neighboring, Arab, and Muslim-majority countries. In a novel application of the event-study design, we trace month-by-month changes in preterm birth and low birthweight – outcomes that shape health and socioeconomic attainment throughout the life course. Our analyses show that the Israel-born diaspora experienced an immediate, short-lived reversal in their previously substantial infant health advantage after the October 7 attacks. Infant health also deteriorated among mothers born in neighboring, other Arab, and other Muslim-majority countries. These findings indicate that the health consequences of violence are not confined to the conflict zone but extend to geographically distant diaspora communities who are connected to the affected populations by shared national and ethnic origin and religion.

You can read the socArXiv preprint here.

Call for Abstracts: POPCLIMA Conference

Population Dynamics in a Changing Climate - Future Directions for Climate Demography

Five years into the ERC POPCLIMA (Population Dynamics Under Global Climate Change) project, evidence has firmly established that climate change influences fertility, mortality, migration, and population health. As climate risks increasingly interact with conflict, economic instability, food insecurity, and other global challenges, climate demography is entering a new phase. This hybrid (in-person and online) conference aims to define the next research agenda for the field – we are excited to discuss with you!

Organisers: University of Bologna (POPCLIMA – ERC Consolidator Grant), in collaboration with the European Association for Population Studies (EAPS) Working Group on Climate and Demographic Change and the International Union for the Scientific Study of Populations (IUSSP) Scientific Panel on Climate and Environmental Demography. I am happy to be on the organising committee with Risto Conte Keivabu, Sirinya Kakeaw, Raya Muttarak, Chiara Puglisi, Tobias Rüttenauer, and Nkechi Srodah Owoo.

Find out more and submit your abstract here!

Deadline for abstract submission is 20 September 2026.

Launch of Climate x Health Seminar Series

New seminar series at Oxford's Climate Research Network

The goal of the Oxford Climate Research Network is to connect researchers across Oxford - we are more than the sum of our parts. To have a regular space for exchange and connection, the network launched its "Climate x Health Seminar Series". The first event took place successfully at Reuben College on 20 July 2026: Ceasar Atuire and Alan Stein gave keynotes introducing their global work on climate justice as well as climate and child health. Participants joined from across the university's departments and research institutes, actively engaged in discussion, and stayed on for a networking reception.

I have the pleasure of co-organizing the seminar series together with Emma Lawrance (Department of Psychiatry) and Sarah Briggs (Nuffield Department of Medicine).

The second seminar will take place in the fall.

To stay up to date, join the Oxford Climate Research Network and sign up to the mailing list here!

Oxford Climate Research NetworkThe Oxford Climate Research Network (OCRN) is the community of researchers and staff at the University of Oxford who work on climate and climate change.

EPC pre-conference event in Bologna, June 2026:

Climate Demography: Population Dynamics in a Changing Climate

The IUSSP Scientific Panel on Climate and Environmental Demography and the EAPS Working Group on Climate Demography are organizing a pre-conference event at the European Population Conference (EPC) in Bologna, June 2026.

The workshop will have keynotes from Roman Hoffmann (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis - Vienna, Austria) and Raya Muttarak (Co-Editor of Population Development Review, Bocconi University and University of Bologna) and Mary Abed Al Ahad (Associate Lecturer in Population and Health Geography St.Andrews University) and Alexander De Sherbinin (Director and a Senior Research Scientist at the Center for Integrated Earth System Information, Columbia University).

IUSSP Scientific Panel on Climate and Environmental Demography founded

Upcoming activities will be announced

A new Scientific Panel on "Climate and Environmental Demography" is now established at the International Union for the Scientific Study of Populations (IUSSP) for the period 2026-2030. I am co-chairing the panel together with Tobias Rüttenauer. We will announce a number of activities, including virtual training, webinars, and discussions on developing best practice methodology. If you'd like to organize an event at the intersection of climate and environmental demography, please don't hesitate to get in touch! And otherwise, stay tuned for announcements here.

We will work closely with the European Association for Population Studies (EAPS) Working Group on Climate Demography - which is also newly established, more information here.

The Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) Program: archiving data for generations to come

Request for Information issued

In our opinion piece (published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in February 2026) we proposed that Demographic and Health Survey data should be archived across multiple locations to create "intentional redundancy". The goal of this is to reduce the DHS Program's vulnerability by preserving data availability and free access even when funding falls away. The DHS Program has now issued a Request for Information to invite institutions based in DHS partner countries to consider hosting data mirrors. The Request for Information is available here and responses are due by 19 June 2026.

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