In this blog, SPHR LiLaC PhD student Rukun Khalaf talks about her PhD placement at Natural Resources Wales developing guidelines to outline how population health could be incorporated into environmental projects.
In 2023, I undertook a PhD placement with a Welsh Government sponsored body that oversees the management of natural resources in Wales. The main placement output was to be a technical guidance note that would outline potential ways population health could be incorporated into Welsh environmental projects. I worked under the supervision of Sue Williams and Steve Meaden in the Health and Education Unit. Like my PhD, the ultimate direction and outputs of my placement was up to me. Consequently, like when I first started my PhD, I was terrified.
To shore up the courage to begin, I remembered the why and my reasons for doing this placement crystallised very quickly. This placement was a valuable learning opportunity to supplement my PhD studies. As part of my PhD, I investigate how living in green or less green areas, and nearer to or further from blue spaces can impact pregnancy-related mental health, birthweight, and more in Wales, Merseyside, and Cheshire. I do this with the use of Big Data that is routinely collected by GPs and other public services. All data are anonymised and undergo vigorous safety checks before I conduct my research. My research looks at how nature interacts with health, so who better to work with than an environmental agency that oversees the management of natural resources in Wales? Moreover, this was a great opportunity to develop knowledge exchange and science communication skills.
The first step in my placement (and PhD) was to conduct a desk review. Since the topic included both the environment and health, I read papers in disciplines ranging from environmental sciences to public health. Owing to my background, I am comfortable with public health literature but environmental sciences/engineering writings read like a foreign language to me. Additionally, I was ignorant of everything and so was curious about anything. I found myself spending hours down intellectual rabbit holes. I remember spending one afternoon reading about the various microorganisms involved in an algae bloom. This was followed on with readings about the negative effects of algae blooms on waterways. Which, evidently, results in disrupted farming and low yields. In China. Not Wales. Thus, very early on, I had to rely on my supervisors to steer me in the right direction. I also had to accept that I would never know all there was to know about the management of natural resources. But understanding the key concepts rather than the nitty gritty details was more important for my purposes.
As a result, I developed a ‘logic model’ (a graphic depiction that shows shared relationships) to indicate the positive impacts of Green and Blue Space on health. The modelled pathways counted mental stress relief, community cohesion building, pollution reduction, and increased biodiversity as positive influences from our natural surroundings. This logic model then served as the foundation for the health assessment tool that we created. The health assessment tool was designed to be incorporated into the NRW’s Health Impact Assessment toolkit. This tool aims to guide project managers on how they could measure the health impacts of their environmental projects on local communities. For example, based on the developed logic model, those living near a newly built reservoir could experience better mental health compared to those living farther from a blue space. Therefore, to assess this, the project could include mental health metrics to evaluate this idea.
I refined this tool through discussions with my supervisors. Moreover, I presented this work at the internal NRW 2023 Evidence Conference to more than 200 attendees. This allowed me to collect any feedback on my work from actual NRW members. The creation of this tool required extensive reading and revisions. It was undoubtedly a challenging experience. However, it has been immensely valuable to me because it marries science with real-world application. The tool is presently being piloted with practitioners to assess the health impacts of NRW projects. In this way, I know my work is worthwhile and impactful.
In conclusion, my PhD placement has been a very meaningful experience. My science communication skills have certainly improved, and I have expanded my professional network. More importantly, this placement served as proof that there is an appetite for knowledge exchange between academia and government, and that my doctoral research can lead to real-world impacts. In future, I aim to continue working with NRW and other governmental bodies to disseminate and adapt my research for maximum usage.