February 7, 2022
Dr. Michael Aitken
The UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health hosted a symposium in November to commemorate its centennial.
The entire department is supported by the Michael D. Aitken Endowment in Environmental Sciences and Engineering, which provides discretionary funds for the ESE chair. These funds will allow the chair to respond quickly to emerging threats to the environment, public health, and well-being of students and faculty in ESE.
Aitken’s focus as a leader and individual was to minimize and remediate human impacts on the natural environment. Aitken lived by the principles he preached. He rode his bicycle to work every day and, as a leader saw the potential to make use of resources to achieve real and lasting good.
Dr. Barbara J. Turpin
Mike, as chair, prioritized the most important resources in the department, junior faculty and students. Barbara J. Turpin (PhD), professor and chair of ESE. He was also an excellent communicator of the special place ESE holds. These investments will continue to be a benefit for us for many years.
Aitken was chair of Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering between 2006 and 2016. Betsy Bea Rudolph, Betsy Bea Rudolph’s wife, stated that Aitken would have greatly appreciated a fund such as this to be used on worthy projects and initiatives during the time he was chair.
Aitken was a committed person who sought out innovative ways to clean up environmental disasters at U.S.Superfund sites. His leadership and research found a natural home in the Gillings Schools ESE Department. The department combines environmental health, science, engineering and engineering to address environmental challenges that have become more complex and require integrated and holistic solutions. ESE faculty and students are more involved in planning and responding to emerging threats to public health, such as aerosol-borne viruses and contaminated floodwaters.
The department celebrated its centennial year by reaffirming its commitment to providing environmental solutions to public health protection and to building resilience to climate and other environmental change. This affirmation continues a century-long legacy of positive impact in North Carolina and around the world. It all began in 1920 with the need to improve water safety in N.C., and was followed by the appointment of the first director for environmental health at the World Health Organization. 25% of ESE graduates worked with international health agencies and foreign governments by the 1970s. Today’s contributions include Superfund research, understanding the effects of per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS forever chemicals), global efforts for safe drinking water through UNC Water Institute, as well as contributions to atmospheric chemistry, the global burden of diseases from air pollution. The symposium that announced Aitkens endowment was named in honor of Philip C. Singer PhD, a nationally recognized expert on water-quality issues, and a member of National Academy of Engineering.
Dr. Aitken was dedicated in the Rosenau Courtyard of the Gillings School
This endowment will fund ESE research that has lasting consequences for all of humanity, including our water, air, and soil. You can help increase this impact by joining Betsy to support the fund. Make a donationTo support the next century in innovation, please donate to the Michael D. Aitken Endowment for Environmental Sciences & Engineering today. Any questions can be directed to Matt Cain, MEd, director of development, at [email protected].
Learn more about the Aitkens legacy.
Contact UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health communications staff at [email protected].