First Annual Research Conference on Global Lead Exposure

Conference
Lead poisoning
Lead acid batteries lying on the ground in Indonesia

The Center for Global Development, in partnership with the Partnership for a Lead-Free Future (PLF), hosted its inaugural Research Conference on Global Lead Exposure on 3-4 June 2025 in Washington, D.C. This dynamic gathering featured 40+ presentations from researchers, policymakers, and funders exploring the impact of childhood lead exposure and what works to address it. 

Date(s)

Time

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2025-06-03T19:00:00 - 2025-06-04T00:30:00
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Agenda

Day 1: Tuesday, 3 June 2025

12:00 – 13:00 ET
Attendees arrive, lunch available
13:00 – 14:30 ET
Welcome and Opening Session: How Research Can Power a Lead-Free Future? 
Panel Discussion
  • Opening Remarks: Markus Goldstein, Vice President and Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development
  • Setting the Scene: Rachel Bonnifield, Director of Global Health Policy and Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development
Panel Discussion
  • Abheet Solomon, Senior Advisor, Environment, UNICEF/Partnership for a Lead-Free Future
  • Tayo Adedeji, Lead for Pollution and Circular Economy, Global Environment Department, World Bank
  • Indu Bhushan, Chair, India Working Group on Lead Poisoning
  • Moderator – Rachel Bonnifield, Director, Global Health Policy Program and Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development
14:30 – 14:45 ET
Coffee Break
14:45 – 16:15 ET
The Global Burden of Disease Attributable to Lead Exposure 
Presentation
  • Estimating the Global Burden of Disease Attributable to Lead Exposure – Sandra Spearman, Researcher, Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation
New Evidence of Impacts 
Presentations
  • Lead Exposure and Cognitive Skills in a Developing Country: Evidence from Toxic Sites in Indonesia – Emilie Berkhout, Research Associate, Youth Impact
  • The Hidden Costs of Recycling: Lead Exposure and Student Learning – Gerald Ipapa, Postdoctoral Fellow, Georgetown University
  • Brazilian Battery Boom: Tax Breaks as Anti-Pollution Policy – Mikey Jarrell, PhD Student, University of California San Diego
  • Moderator - Justin Sandefur, Senior Program Officer, Open Philanthropy
16:15 – 16:30 ET
Coffee Break
16:30 – 17:30 ET
Methods and Practice of Lead Surveillance 
Presentations
  • A Systematic Approach to Conducting Capacity Assessments for Establishing Blood Lead Surveillance: Lessons Learned from Asia and Latin America –Yi Lu, Senior Technical Advisor - Environmental Health, Vital Strategies and Yatin Pimplé, Senior Program Manager of South Asia Region – Environmental Health Surveillance, Vital Strategies
  • A Statewide Blood Lead Survey: Learnings from an Indian State – N. Vinayagamoorthy, Assistant Professor, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education & Research
  • The Problem of Prioritization: Using Biokinetic Models to Estimate Relative Contributions of Lead Exposure Sources – Elizabeth Sefton, Fellow, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and Casey Bartrem, Executive Director, TerraGraphics International Foundation
  • Moderator – Bret Ericson, Adjunct Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, NYU School of Global Public Health
17:30-19:00 ET
Reception

Agenda

Day 2: Wednesday, 4 June 2025

9:15 – 10:30 ET
Paint and Batteries - Established Sources
Presentations
  • High prevalence of Child Lead Poisoning Driven by the Battery Industry: Synthesizing Interdisciplinary Evidence of Multiple Sources in Bangladesh – Jenna Forsyth, Director, Project Unleaded, Stanford University
  • Patching Sustainability Loopholes Within the Lead-Acid Battery Industry of Bangladesh: An Environmental and Occupational Health Risk Perspective – Rania Jamal, Graduate Student, Indiana University Bloomington
  • A Toxic Threat to Indonesia’s Human Capital: Prevalence and Impact of Lead Paint in Indonesian Homes – William Seitz, Senior Economist, The World Bank
  • What Share of Lead Exposure Comes from Battery Recycling? - Lee Crawfurd, Senior Research Fellow, Center for Global Development
  • Moderator - Clare Donaldson, Co-Executive Director, Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP)
10:30 – 10:45 ET
Coffee Break
10:45 – 11:45 ET
Emerging Sources
Presentations
  • Heavy Metals Contamination in Urban Agriculture: Evidence from Nairobi – Vivian Hoffmann, Senior Research Fellow, International Food Policy Research Institute
  • Potential Lead Exposure from Aluminum Cooking Pots in Lower and Middle-Income Countries – Gordon Binkhorst, Senior Technical Advisor, Pure Earth
  • Lead Contamination and Risk Level in Ethiopia: A Neglected Public Health Hazard – Argaw Ambelu, Professor of Environmental Health, Addis Ababa University
  • Moderator – Nida Parks, Chief of Staff, Pure Earth
11:45 – 13:00 ET
Lunch and Poster Presentations
13:00 – 14:15 ET
Understanding Supply Chains and Incentives
Presentations
  • Mexican Toxicity: The Supply Chain of Lead Compounds for the Pottery, Plastics and Paint Industries – Sofia Carlota Chavez Arce, Executive Director, Casa Cem - VIas Verdes A.C.
  • “All that Glitters is Not Turmeric”: Understanding Turmeric Lead Chromate Adulteration in Pakistan – Usman Anwar, PhD Candidate, Suleman Dawood School of Business, Lahore University of Management Sciences
  • Behavior of Retailers in an Informal Circular Economy for Durable Goods – Amrita Kundu, Assistant Professor, Operations and Analytics, Georgetown University, McDonough School of Business
  • Toxic Lead Paint Pigment Exports from Rich to Poor Countries – Rory Todd, Research Associate, Center for Global Development
  • Moderator – Will Fitzgibbon, Senior Reporter and Global Partnership Coordinator, The Examination
14:15 – 15:15 ET
Interventions
Presentations
  • Evidence that Workplace Interventions Reduce Children’s Lead Exposure – Perry Gottesfeld, Executive Director, Occupational Knowledge International
  • Reducing child lead exposure through a participatory approach: A pilot intervention in Abidjan, Ivory Coast – Alexander van Geen, Research Professor, Columbia University
  • A Comprehensive Approach for Lead Exposure Reduction: Investigating Sources, Cognitive and Oral Health Impacts, and Public Health Strategies in Rural areas of Gurgaon, India – Rangoli Srivastava, Assistant Professor, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Sciences, SGT University
  • Moderator – Lee Crawfurd, Senior Research Fellow, Center for Global Development
15:15 – 15:45 ET
Coffee Break
15:45 – 16:45 ET
National Experiences Assessing and Responding to Lead Exposure
Presentations
  • Assessing Lead Exposure Risks, Testing Capacity and Mitigation Strategies in Malawi: Insights from Stakeholder Consultations, Environmental Observations, and Geospatial Mapping – Chifundo Colleta Zimba, Executive Director, National Organization of Nurses and Midwives of Malawi
  • Mexico’s Immediate Action Program for the Control of Lead Exposure in Mexico, from biomonitoring to public health action – Marcela Tamayo-Ortiz, Associate Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University
  • Lead Exposure and Source Attribution in Children: Evidence from Poti and Guria, Georgia, Demonstrating Local Capability Building – Ekaterine Ruadze, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, National Center for Disease Control and Public Health of Georgia
  • Moderator – Dan Kass, Senior Vice President, Environmental, Climate & Urban Health, Vital Strategies
16:45 – 17:30 ET
Closing Session: The Role of Funders in Addressing Lead Poisoning
A Conversation with Tom Hird, Head of Grant Making, Lead Exposure Action Fund (LEAF)
  • Tom Hird, Head of Grant Making, Lead Exposure Action Fund (LEAF)
  • Moderator – Rachel Bonnifield, Director, Global Health Policy Program and Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development