UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health

Tracking SARS-CoV-2 Variants

SARS-CoV-2 variants may seem like a scary new chapter in the pandemic, but coronavirus experts expected their arrival. Scientists in the UNC School of Medicine and Gillings School of Global Public Health are tracking the variants to learn how they differ and affect the world’s chance of ending this pandemic.

READDI, Not Reactive

For decades, scientists warned of the potential for a global coronavirus outbreak. But when SARS-CoV-2 emerged, no therapeutics, drugs, or vaccines were readily available. The Rapidly Emerging Antiviral Drug Development Initiative (READDI) — founded by researchers at UNC and the Structural Genomics Consortium — is not only finding solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic, but also drugs and therapeutics for future viral outbreaks.
A woman poses for a portrait holding a lightbulb

Setting a Field Alight

With support from UNC student researchers, Benjamin Mason Meier has finalized a first-of-its-kind textbook integrating human rights policy into public health education — a guiding light to aid the next generation of researchers.

Addressing Pandemic Problems

While COVID-19 has shaken the world, it has also pushed society to be more innovative and creative — two attributes that have been essential to the success of researchers at UNC. Carolina students, faculty, and staff are engaged in an abundance of projects, making UNC the most cited university in the nation for coronavirus research.
Don Fejfarphoto by Megan May

Donald Fejfar

Don Fejfar is a junior and Morehead-Cain Scholar majoring in biostatistics within the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. He studies how disease relates to food and water quality, security, and accessibility on Isabela Island in Galápagos, Ecuador.

The Known Unknowns

In 2016, a group of North Carolina researchers published evidence of high rates of PFAS in the Cape Fear River basin. While this unregulated family of chemicals is used in the production of everyday goods, its impact on human health is largely unknown. For the past year, scientists from UNC-Chapel Hill, five other UNC system universities, and Duke University, have researched these potentially dangerous chemicals found in drinking water sources across the state.
Howard Odum sits in his office in the UNC Alumni Buildingphoto courtesy of University Archives

A Father for Social Science

The Odum Institute, the first social science research center in the world, has trained and supported hundreds of researchers specializing in everything from anthropology to city and regional planning to public health for the past 95 years. And it all exists thanks to the determination of one eccentric man.
Portrait of Wizdom Powell

Wizdom Powell

Wizdom Powell is a health behavior professor in the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, as well as a trained population health disparities research scientist and clinical psychologist. Her research focuses on addressing the social determinants of health inequities among boys and men of color.
Portrait of Meaghan Nazareth on campusPhoto by Alyssa LaFaro

Meaghan Nazareth

Rising senior Meaghan Nazareth is a biostatistics major and chemistry minor within the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. She conducts research with the UNC STARx Program, which seeks to understand self-management and transition from pediatric to adult-focused health care.