Our Team

Kelley Skumautz, MA

Kelley has a genuine and grounded expression of systems thinking, and has worked for more than 30 years in nonprofit organizational development. Kelley’s experience with climate and health equity spans a broad spectrum of issues – from air pollution, to eco-grief, to zero waste advocacy and action. Born and raised in Minnesota, Kelley’s personal and professional interests are also shaped by nearly two decades living and working in Southern and Central California. Kelley is excited about bridging art, storytelling, and inclusive narratives with real solutions related to climate and health equity, and she especially appreciates initiatives involving expertise, knowledge, and leadership coming from those furthest away from power. Kelley is pursuing a Master of Science in Co-occurring Disorders Recovery Counseling at Metropolitan State University; previously she earned a Master of Arts in Humanities from Mount St. Mary’s University.

Connect with Kelley: [email protected]

Ava Corey-Gruenes, MA

Ava is an environmental justice organizer whose work bridges environmental and health equity. Along with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Gender and Women’s Studies from Minnesota State University, Mankato (MNSU), her experience includes divestment initiatives with MN and US Youth Climate Strike, antimilitarist and anticolonial activism with Mavs for Change, environmental education efforts with Start:Empowerment and MNSU, and healthcare access work at Planned Parenthood. Ava’s master’s thesis explored strategies to sustain intersectional environmental justice activism. Through their academic and activist work, Ava hopes to encourage communities to see environmental justice as interconnected with broader liberation movements.

Connect with Ava: [email protected]

Rachel Wormer, MPH

Rachel’s public health work is rooted in improving the conditions that we live, work, play, and learn in. She brings experience within the sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice movements, including roles in political research, public policy strategy, and advocacy communications. Rachel holds a bachelor’s degree in Community and Public Health from South Dakota State University and a Master of Public Health degree from the City University of New York in Harlem.

Currently, she’s a board member for the Twin Cities chapter of Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy. Rachel believes deeply in the power of community, slowing down in a rushed society, and is passionate about activating health workers to join the movement for the healthy climate and just future we know is possible.

Connect with Rachel: [email protected]

Bharat Balyan, MPH

Bharat received a Master of Public Health in Global Environmental Health in 2019 from the University of Minnesota. Prior to starting graduate school, he spent a gap year to explore his passion for environmental work, where he served as a MN GreenCorps member with the Minneapolis Health Department. During this service year, he worked of a variety of active transportation projects with a focus on improving wellness of employees and Minneapolis residents and reducing emissions. While in graduate school, he was an active member of Health Students for a Healthy Climate, spreading awareness about the link between climate and health. He also worked on a project in a pilot course which helped quantify the sustainability impacts of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. He worked as an intern at Saint Paul-Ramsey County Public Health, where he developed a climate change vulnerability assessment. After graduate school, Bharat was an Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) Fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Climate and Health program in the division of environmental health science and practice. His work focused on researching the mental health impacts of drought, as well as supporting other climate and health projects which support health departments with climate and health initiatives across the country. Currently, Bharat is the Resilience Hub Project Coordinator at the City of Minneapolis Health Department, working to support the development of a first cohort of three resilience hub sites in Minneapolis.

Connect with Bharat: [email protected]

Jo Bjorgaard, DNP, BSN, RN, PHN

Jo Bjorgaard is a dedicated leader in public and planetary health, bringing over a decade of experience in partnering with health systems and communities to create impactful climate solutions. Currently the Senior Climate & Health Manager at the Climate Advocacy Lab as well as being an independent consultant, Jo focuses on the critical connections between climate change and human health. She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice in Health Innovation and Leadership and is a former Harvard C-CHANGE Climate and Health Organizing Fellow, as well as a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt. Passionate about educating communities on planetary health, Jo has delivered numerous trainings and presentations at hospitals, academic institutions, and conferences. Through her work, she applies quality improvement methodologies and systems thinking to drive systemic change, fostering resilience and sustainability in health practices.

Connect with Jo: [email protected]

Brenna Doheny, PhD, MPH

Brenna Doheny earned her PhD at the Medical University of South Carolina in Marine Biomedicine and Environmental Sciences, studying the effects of environmental endocrine disrupting contaminants on female reproductive tract development in a sentinel species, the American alligator. Her interest in communicating environmental health science to the public then led her to pursue a Master of Public Health degree in maternal and child health at the University of Minnesota. She is currently focused on communicating the health impacts of climate change to the public and policymakers and fostering community-based strategies to promote mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.

Connect with Brenna: [email protected]

Alex Kim, MPH, LEED Green Associate

Alex received his Master of Public Health degree in Environmental Health from the University of Minnesota in 2016. He has been active in the pursuit of a more sustainable present and future by working with Abbott Northwestern Hospital to develop more environmentally friendly practices and through board membership for several environmental non-profit organizations. He is a Waste Reduction and Recycling Specialist for Hennepin County and enjoys actively engaging with the community and local businesses to reduce food waste and promote recycling. In his free time, he enjoys all things food and drink related, watching movies, live music, and gardening.

Connect with Alex: [email protected]

Toya López, MHA, LEED Green Associate, ISSP-SA

Toya graduated with a master’s degree in Healthcare Administration from the University of Minnesota. Toya has worked as a Sustainability Professional in the Healthcare Industry since 2016 in Kansas, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. In addition to HPHC board membership, Toya is also a member of the Cooperative Energy Futures Board and Elliot Park Neighborhood Board. Toya’s work involves public speaking, partnering with communities and organizations, housing justice, linking social determinants of health and equity with sustainability efforts, leading sustainability initiatives, and advocacy for a more environmentally sustainable and equitable healthcare industry.

Connect with Toya: [email protected]

Kathleen Schuler, MPH

While climate change advocacy is her retirement project, Kathleen previously served as Healthy Kids and Families Program Director at Conservation Minnesota and Co-Director of Healthy Legacy, a Minnesota coalition and campaign to advance public policies and business practices that focus on safer products and safer production methods to protect public health from toxic chemical exposures. She was a co-founder of the Minnesota Green Chemistry Forum, a collaboration among business, government, NGOs and academic leaders to advance green chemistry practice and policy in Minnesota and nationally. Earlier in her career Kathleen served in various Project Manager positions for Medicaid managed care programs at the MN Department of Human Services. Kathleen has a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Minnesota and is a former Bush Leadership Fellow in environmental health.

Connect with Kathleen: [email protected]

Laalitha Surapaneni, MD, MPH

Dr. Vishnu Laalitha Surapaneni is a practicing hospitalist at the MHealth Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis and an assistant professor, educator, and researcher at the University of Minnesota Medical School with a public health degree from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Originally from India, Dr. Surapaneni completed her medical school training at Andhra Medical College King George Hospital in Andhra Pradesh, India, and her residency in internal medicine at University Hospitals Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Surapaneni’s areas of focus are impacts of climate change on health equity, and the role of physician advocacy in developing science-based policy. As a physician advocate, she has provided testimony to the Minnesota legislature on numerous occasions on the health impacts of climate change and fossil fuel infrastructure. As a science communicator, she regularly speaks with media outlets about public health impacts of climate change and has been interviewed by outlets such as MPR, Associated Press, and the Guardian. She also regularly contributes opinion pieces and is Public Voices fellow with The OpEd Project in partnership with the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication.

Connect with Laalitha: [email protected]

Daniel Trajano, MD, MBA

Dr. Daniel (Dan) Trajano is a retired family physician, geriatrician, and population health executive from Savage, Minn. He is currently an adjunct professor of healthcare finance and economics at the University of Minnesota and University of St. Thomas. Dr. Trajano serves on the Board of Directors for Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate, MNsure, and the Philippine Minnesota Medical Association. He is a volunteer organizer with several  nonprofit organizations advocating for zero-emission electric school buses, clean transportation, 100% renewable energy, and inclusive utility investments for energy efficiency upgrades. In his leisure time, Dan enjoys electric vehicle road trips, nature activities, buckthorn busting, swimming, and pickleball. He also plays volleyball on team ‘Bicol Express’ with his wife Paula, son Henry, daughter Danielle, and other family and friends.

Connect with Dan: [email protected]

Macaran “Mac” Baird, MD, MS

Mac is an emeritus professor at the University of Minnesota – Department of Family Medicine and Community Health as well as the former CEO of UMPhysicans. He began his medical career in 1978 as a rural family physician. He later received a master’s degree in family medicine and community health, with a minor in counseling. Baird has since held academic positions in Oklahoma, New York, and Minnesota. He has served on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Depression in Primary Care National Advisory Council and co-chaired the 2001 Institute of Medicine report on health and behavior. Baird currently chairs the UCare Board of Directors and is past president of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine. In early 2015, STFM awarded Baird the Lynn and Joan Carmichael STFM Recognition Award for his contributions to the society and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) awarded him the Thomas W. Johnson Award for Career Contributions to Family Medicine Education.

D. Eric Beck, MD, FACP

Eric trained in Internal Medicine at the U of MN and is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. He works as a Hospitalist in several Twin Cities metro hospitals. While studying at the Medical College of Wisconsin, he served as president of the local chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility and completed an internship at the United Nations Development Program. During residency, Eric was awarded a Paul Alexander Memorial fellowship and spent three months in Nairobi, Kenya, studying new models of Primary Care delivery. He has enjoyed volunteering with Medical Educators for Latin America (MELA) in Bolivia, and with Common Hope in Guatemala. In November of 2017, he traveled to Puerto Rico to help with recovery efforts in some of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Maria. In addition to his work with HPHC, Eric is interested in Global public health, the environmental impacts of healthcare systems, and in the potential connections between innovative and disruptive technologies and improvements in climate health.

Kathy Iverson

Kathy worked for the City of Edina as the Chemical Health Prevention Specialist from 1994-2014. In that capacity, she developed and coordinated policy for smoke-free restaurants in Edina, Bloomington, and Richfield as part of a grant for Bloomington Public Health. She also worked with other local communities and health organizations in developing and successfully passing the State of Minnesota – Freedom to Breathe legislation. She now volunteers in a variety of community efforts, including Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate. She continues to focus on supporting clean air policy through initiatives focused on climate change mitigation.

Rachel Kerr, DNP, RN

Rachel is the Energy Program Director for Earthworks.  She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Minnesota, where her scholarly focus was engaging health professionals around climate justice.  Rachel has a background in oncology nursing and began her career providing nursing care for people facing serious health impacts related to community exposure to pollution from petrochemical and oil and gas industry. Galvanized by this experience and her own personal and family health impacts resulting from climate change, Rachel transformed her career to care for people by caring for the Earth. Prior to her employment at Earthworks, Dr. Kerr managed programming focused on environmental health, environmental justice, health equity, and anti-racism with the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments.

Michael Menzel, MD

Mike is a member of the American Society of Anesthesiology. He served as Founder and Director of the Acute Pain Service at Abbott-Northwestern Hospital from 1988-1991, and he served as Founder and Director of Guatemala Surgery from 1997-2005. He also served on the Board of President-Common Hope from 1996-1998, which is a non-profit organization providing healthcare and education to impoverished Guatemalans. He is also a member of the Twin Cities Medical Society (TCMS) Environmental Health Task Force and was co-chair of HPHC’s Code Blue for Patient Earth conference on April 20, 2018.

Phillip Peterson, MD

Phil is Professor of Medicine and Distinguished Global Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota Medical School. He is the past Director of the Infectious Diseases and International Medicine Division of the Department of Medicine and of the Medical School’s International Medical Education and Research Program. He served as Acting Director of the U of M Center for Global Health & Social Responsibility from 2010-2013. His interests are fostering interdisciplinary/intercollegiate and community partnerships that address the most pressing health problems within the global village. Phil shares his expertise and perspectives  on infectious diseases at his blog, Germ Gems.

Teddie M. Potter, PhD, RN, FAAN

Dr. Potter is deeply committed to climate change and planetary health education. Dr. Potter is the inaugural director of the Center for Planetary Health and Environmental Justice at the School of Nursing at the University of Minnesota and a Fellow in the Institute on the Environment at the University. She is a board member of the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and the Planetary Health Report Card. She is a member of the American Academy of Nursing Environment and Public Health Expert Panel and the Coordinating Committee of Columbia University’s Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education, and the Steering Committee of the Planetary Health Alliance (PHA). She serves on the National Academy of Medicine’s Action Collaborative on Decarbonizing the US Health Sector; the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM); and the Climate Crossroads committee of NASEM. Her most recent work is working with the International Council of Nurses to promote Nursing for Planetary Health.

Bruce D. Snyder, MD, FAAN

Bruce is a Clinical Professor of Neurology at the University of Minnesota Medical School. He has published numerous scientific papers, book chapters and review articles in his field of Neurology. Bruce is a co-founder of HPHC and was a member of the Executive Committee from 2014-2019. He has served as a resource for legislators and agencies; has provided expert testimony on the health effects of climate change; and has written numerous letters and editorials addressing these issues. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology and of the American Neurological Association and has served as an examiner for the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.

William Toscano, Ph.D., Dr. (hc), FAAAS

Bill received a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (1978), and was a Postdoctoral fellow in Pharmacology at the University of Washington, School of Medicine, Seattle (1978-1980). He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and was awarded an honorary Doctor Degree from GEOMEDI University, Tbilisi Georgia citing his contributions to the public health system of the Republic of Georgia. He joined the Division of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Minnesota School of Public health as Professor and Division Head in 1999. Formerly he was Chair of Environmental Health Sciences, Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine (1993-1999), and an associate professor of Toxicology at the University of Minnesota (1990-1993), assistant and associate professor of toxicology at the Harvard School of Public Health (1980-1990). His research focuses on gene – environment interactions, including climate change and social determinants as exposures and receptor-mediated endocrine disruption.