On Monday Oct 9, Dr. James Winebrake, Professor of Public
Policy and Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Rochester Institute of
Technology, held an interesting presentation to students, faculty and staff of
the Dubrovnik campus on the topic "Death by Ships: The Health Impacts of Global
Shipping and the International Policy Response”. In this presentation, Dr. Winebrake talked
about the human health impacts associated with global shipping, with particular
attention paid to emissions of sulfur oxides and particulate matter. Dr. Winebrake presented new research that
uses atmospheric fate and transport models to translate global ship emissions
over water to air pollution on land, and then ultimately to health impacts on
exposed human populations. This research
is particularly important given recent debates regarding new international
policies aimed at reducing sulfur in the fuel that most oceangoing vessels
burn.
Dr. Winebrake’s research focuses on the environmental
impacts of transportation and energy systems, and he has published over 65
articles on topics that include the health impacts of freight transportation,
life-cycle analysis of alternative fuels, cost-effectiveness of emissions
reduction technologies, and rebound effects in the heavy-duty trucking
sector. Dr. Winebrake serves or has
served on several National Academies of Science committees, the New York State
Energy Planning Board, and other professional boards related to energy and
environmental technology and policy. In
2010 Dr. Winebrake was awarded the RIT Trustees Scholar Award in recognition of
his scholarly contributions in the energy and environmental fields. He has also received numerous other research
and teaching awards during his career, including the Madison Scholar Award and
multiple Outstanding Teacher Awards while a faculty member at James Madison
University. Dr. Winebrake received his
PhD in Energy Management and Policy from the University of Pennsylvania
(Philadelphia, PA). He also holds a B.S.
in Physics from Lafayette College (Easton, PA) and a M.S. in Technology and
Policy from M.I.T. (Cambridge, MA).