Description:
In this episode, we get to hear from Jeremiah Headen, ANHE’s Fellowship Program Director, as he walks us through how and why the Sustainability Toolkit was created. More importantly, we hear about how nurses can use it to take action.
Jeremiah Headen
Jeremiah Headen (he/they) is the ANHE Fellowship Program Director. Originally from a small town in Northern Virginia, Jeremiah
attended American University where he received a degree in political science. Since graduating, he consistently seeks out positions that advance equity for communities with high levels of disinvestment. He taught in DC Public Schools as a high school teacher, worked as the lead organizer of a political campaign, provided TA for organizers all across the country, and served as a facilitator for various leadership training programs for social change leaders. Prior to taking on this role, Jeremiah created a program with a team of consultants at the Rockwood Leadership Institute called the “Heart of Black Leadership” that provides a unique leadership training specifically designed for Black leaders working within the social justice movement in response to the summer of 2020. Outside of work, Jeremiah enjoys spending time with loved ones as well as writing and performing songs.
Guest Host:
Christina Watkins
Cristina Watkins is a board-certified family nurse practitioner (FNP-BC) with over 15 years of experience in a variety of medical specialties from pediatrics to vascular neurology, to currently working in telemedicine practicing family and urgent care medicine. After finishing her undergraduate degrees in molecular cell biology and public health at UC Berkeley, she went on to earn her MSN degree from Samuel Merritt University. The Covid pandemic reawakened her passion for public health and health promotion driving her to enroll in the DNP/MPH program at Johns Hopkins University. There she focused on climate change and its effects on health especially among vulnerable groups. Her DNP project looked at climate change’s effects on water security with the understanding that access to clean water is vital for health especially amoung the most vulnerable, pregnant or nursing moms and their babies.
Outside of healthcare, Cristina is always up for an adventure, whether it’s trying a new craft like making stained glass or sailing around the Caribbean with her family.
Resources:
About the Nurses for Healthy Environments Podcast
2025 marks the 8th season of the Nurses for Healthy Environments Podcast. Since 2017, Beth and other hosts have interviewed dozens nurses across the globe, all of whom are working at the intersection of health and environment. The goals of the podcast are to highlight and share the amazing and leading work nurses around the world are doing to help protect our natural world in order to support health and healing, and to spread the word about the fabulous work of the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments. We’re glad you found us!
Again and again, nurses are spearheading social change, climate action, environmental justice, and improving health for vulnerable populations, while using their valuable clinical skills, teaching, and caring. Nurses’ work can seem overlooked or taken for granted, and we are here to tell their important stories. We hope you enjoy meeting the nurses in the Nurses for Healthy Environments podcast!
Beth Schenk, Nurses for Healthy Environments Podcast Host
Elizabeth Schenk, PhD, RN, FAAN, is a leader of environmental stewardship in healthcare, where she has been working to reduce
pollution from healthcare for 3 decades. Schenk is a former board member of the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and serves on the boards of Montana Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate and Climate Smart Missoula.
