Climate and health education across the state university of New York: An assessment of the largest university system in the United States

Abstract

Introduction

Climate change is one of the largest threats to public health. Health professionals are increasingly interested in and expected to address climate-related health risks, yet education opportunities in this area remain limited. This study evaluates climate and health-related educational offerings within the largest University system in the United States, the State University of New York (SUNY), to assess current availability and identify gaps.

Materials and Methods

We conducted a comprehensive review of publicly available programs and course listings related to climate and health across all 64 SUNY campuses. Programs were categorized by degree and program type. Data were analyzed by program, institution, and geographic location.

Results

Of 225 identified climate-related programs and courses, only 30 (13.3%) addressed the intersection of climate and health. Climate and health content was concentrated at three institutions, making up >50% of relevant offerings. Community colleges and rural campuses had limited offerings, and several health focused institutions lacked climate-related content entirely. Climate and health education across the SUNY system is limited and unevenly distributed. These disparities reflect broader systemic barriers such as limited faculty expertise, lack of curriculum mandates, and competing academic priorities. Addressing these gaps will require strategic investment in faculty development, interdisciplinary curriculum design, and expanded use of flexible learning formats like online modules and microcredentials.

Conclusion

Expanding interdisciplinary climate and health education across the SUNY system promises to strengthen climate resilience, promote equitable access to education, and better prepare New York’s health workforce for climate-related health risks.

1. Introduction

Climate change has been deemed to be one of our greatest threats to health [1,2]. Extreme temperatures, flooding, and changes in vector habitats have contributed to an increased prevalence of vector-borne illness, diseases of the cardiovascular, respiratory, immune, and neurological systems, and an increased incidence of undernutrition, drowning, or other adverse outcomes [[3], [4], [5]]. Climate change’s influence on extreme weather and diminished air quality disproportionately affect marginalized communities and vulnerable populations [5]. Climate change is a critical threat to public health and health equity. One vital aspect of mitigating climate change and building resilience to the associated health damages is through education [6]. Despite the importance of this interdisciplinary education, gaps in climate change-related educational offerings remain [4].

Given the impacts of climate change on health, it is important that health professionals are climate-informed [7,8]. Health care professionals serve on the frontlines of climate change, tasked with protecting both individual and community health from climate-related health threats and responding to climate hazards which cause safety and health impairments [9]. Additionally, healthcare workers have a role in ensuring that the systems in which they work are resilient and capable of meeting the population's needs in situations of extreme weather and climate crises [9]. As respected and trusted messengers of health information [10], healthcare professionals are also important advocates for interdisciplinary solutions to the climate crisis and its health impacts.

Health professionals are also interested in learning more about how climate change is affecting them and their patients. Of over 4500 surveyed healthcare workers, 40% reported that climate change is very important to them, 77% believed climate change would cause a moderate to great deal of harm to their patients, and 41% said that a lack of knowledge contributes to reduced communication about climate change [11]. The majority of respondents wanted continuing professional education, including communications training, on climate and health [11]. More than 90% of surveyed employers see a growing need for climate-competent public health professionals [12]. More than 75% of clinicians surveyed said that it was important that their organizations addressed climate change, with more than half of clinicians reporting that a prospective employer's actions around climate change would influence their decision to apply for a job [13]. Health professionals want climate and health to be discussed and for educational resources to be available [13,14]. Meeting the wants and needs of current and future health professionals presents a great opportunity for student recruitment into educational programs.

Despite the importance of and interest in climate-related education in health-related disciplines, opportunities for such education remain limited. In an evaluation of nationally accredited schools of public health, fewer than half were found to offer climate change-related courses [15]. An analysis of health professional programs in New England found that while 46% of programs had at least one climate change-related offering, 87% of all educational opportunities available across the region were concentrated among six universities [16]. The Association of American Medical Colleges, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the Physician Assistant Education Association, and the Council on Education for Public Health all lack mandated climate change education in their curricula [17,18]. Lack of structured programs and institutional support, localized expertise and resources, fragmentation of educational systems, and institutional commitment have been reported as barriers to increasing educational offerings in climate change and health concepts [4,19].

New York State (NYS) has been repeatedly recognized as a leader for climate action [20,21]. The State University of New York (SUNY) education system is the largest and most comprehensive in the country, spanning 64 campuses and educating 468,000 students annually [22]. One-third of NYS residents with a college degree are a SUNY alum [23]. SUNY released their Climate and Sustainability Action Plan in 2025, with goals related to decarbonization of SUNY facilities, improved community resilience through infrastructure reinforcement, promotion of clean energy solutions for a sustainable economy, and leadership development [24]. This plan also aims to increase access to climate education, specifically citing the need for interdisciplinary climate and sustainability education across degree programs, courses, and applied educational opportunities [24].

While SUNY has advertised interdisciplinary programs in sustainability for those in construction and building trades, engineering, conservation science, energy, and management or policy [25], health has not been a focused target of sustainability programs, courses, or educational opportunities. Without climate change-focused courses or programs, students entering health professions may miss out on the essential knowledge and skills necessary to confront the health risks of climate change, with some even unaware of the need to act. As a result, many graduates may enter the workforce unprepared to engage in or address environmental challenges, perpetuating a cycle of disengagement [26]. This lack of education limits the potential for meaningful contributions to the fight against climate change - an area where SUNY has a clear opportunity for growth. Additionally, it is vital that health professionals entering the workforce are equipped with the tools and resources to address climate-related impacts. With 80–85% of SUNY alumni staying and working in NYS after graduation, a lack of climate and health education puts the state as a whole at a disadvantage [23].

Expanding climate and health educational opportunities for students within the SUNY system would better prepare our state health infrastructure and protect the health of New Yorkers. City and county health department officials in NYS previously cited barriers such as access to resources, staff training, and relevant expertise for preparedness in addressing climate change-related health concerns [14]. More recently, the 2024 NYS Climate Impacts Assessment found that collaboration and engagement with local health departments was key to address the effects of climate change, but local stakeholders need knowledge of local climate impacts, hazards, and tools to do so [27].

Our present study examines the current availability of climate and health programs targeted towards health-relevant educational programs across the SUNY system to explore opportunities to increase educational training opportunities as a pathway for increasing the climate preparedness and resilience of the NYS health workforce. We explore the current offerings at the intersection of climate and health within the SUNY system and seek to identify concrete ways in which academic programs can be expanded to ensure more equitable access for students across NYS.

2. Methodology

This study utilized publicly available online resources to catalogue existing educational programs (i.e., majors, minors, degrees, certificates) related to climate and health within the SUNY system. Programs were broken up into Undergraduate majors (e.g., bachelor and associate degree programs, certificates), graduate degrees (e.g., master degrees, advanced certificates, doctoral degrees), or online programs (e.g., associate, bachelor, or master degrees, certificates). We also examined individual courses worth 3–4 academic credits. A standardized search protocol was developed using SUNY website search tools [[28], [29], [30]]. Each search was conducted using individual keyword searches related to climate and sustainability, including: climate, climate change, environment, environmental, sustainable, sustainability, and conservation.

Searches were performed using a standardized, detailed protocol and data were collected independently by 2 authors (K.G. and B.D.). Data were then reviewed and compared by a third author (E.S.) with any discrepancies settled by additional searches. All searches were conducted between June and July of 2025. The full search strategy is available in Supplemental Material 1.

Data collection included title of the course or program, name of school where the program is offered, degree type, delivery mode, and credit hours. We identified all courses and programs that were returned in these searches. “Offerings” refers to any program or course. Offering descriptions were then reviewed to further identify if opportunities were specifically health-related. Syllabi (if available) and school websites were consulted where further clarification was needed.

SUNY school information was collected via SUNY’s “Complete Campus List” website [31]. This included school names, geographic location, and school type. School type was broken down into four categories: university center, university college, technology college, and community college, as designated on the SUNY website.

Data were tabulated and summary descriptive statistics were performed to characterize availability of programs. We examined the availability of offerings related to climate and to climate and health by school type and degree program. We also explored offerings based on geographic region within the state using ArcGIS web-based mapping software.

3. Results

A total of 64 campuses offered a range of undergraduate and graduate degrees, including 14 university centers, 13 university colleges, 30 community colleges, and 7 technology colleges across the SUNY system. There was a total of 60 environmental- or climate-related undergraduate programs, 52 graduate programs, 8 online programs, and 105 courses across the SUNY system. However, only 1 undergraduate program, 7 graduate programs, 2 online programs, and 20 courses focused on the intersection of climate and health. The smallest percent was undergraduate programs, with just 1.7% of climate-related programs discussing health (Fig. 1). Of climate-relevant content, 13.5% of the graduate programs, 25% of the online programs, and 19.0% of the courses focused on the health aspects of climate. Graduate programs included 2 Master of Science programs, 1 Master of Public Health program, 1 Master of Professional Studies, a doctoral degree, and 2 advanced certificate programs.

Fig. 1.

SUNY climate-related educational offerings undergraduate programs, graduate programs, online programs, and courses. The total number of offerings is shown in gray, with black highlighting which of those offerings contain health-related content.

The singular climate and health-related undergraduate bachelor’s degree was offered at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF). Approximately 13.5% of climate-related graduate level programs, including 2 certificates, 4 master's, and 1 doctoral program, were also health-related. There were only 2 online programs at any level that were climate and health-related (Table 1). This included an advanced certificate in Environmental Justice and Inequality and a Master of Professional Studies in Environmental Leadership, Justice, and Communication, both offered at SUNY ESF.

Table 1.

Distribution of health-related climate educational offerings across SUNY programs. Offerings include undergraduate programs, graduate programs, online programs, or courses.

Type	Degree	Climate-Related Offerings (n)	Climate and Health-Related Offerings (n) (%)
Undergraduate	All	60	1 (1.7)
	Certificate	7	0 (0)
	Associate	18	0 (0)
	Bachelors	35	1 (2.9)
Graduate	All	52	7 (13.5)
	Certificate	6	2 (33.3)
	Master's	33	4 (12.1)
	Doctorate	13	1 (7.7)
Online	All	8	2 (25)
	Certificate	4	1 (25)
	Associate	2	0 (0)
	Bachelors	1	0 (0)
	Master's	1	1 (100)
Courses	All	105	20 (19.1)

Approximately 46% of the 61 SUNY schools that offer undergraduate degrees, and about a third of those offering graduate degrees, offered any climate-related program. Only two schools, University of Buffalo and SUNY ESF, offered 5 or more climate-related undergraduate programs.

Similar trends appeared when looking at courses, with 47% of schools offering no climate-related courses, and nearly 80% offering no climate and health-related courses. Thirteen schools offered at least 1 climate and health course, with 5 of those schools offering multiple (Table 2).

Table 2.

Number of SUNY schools with climate-related educational offerings or climate and health offerings. Offerings include undergraduate programs, graduate programs, online programs, or courses.

		Number of SUNY Schools
Type	Number of Offerings	Climate-Related Offering, n (%)	Climate and Health-Related Offering, n (%)
Undergraduate	0	33 (51.6)	63 (98.4)
	1	17 (26.6)	1 (1.6)
	2–4	12 (18.8)	0 (0)
	5+	2 (3.1)	0 (0)
Graduate	0	55 (85.9)	60 (93.8)
	1	3 (4.7)	1 (1.6)
	2–4	3 (4.7)	3 (4.7)
	5+	3 (4.7)	0 (0)
Online	0	60 (93.8)	63 (98.4)
	1	3 (4.7)	0 (0)
	2–4	0 (0)	1 (1.6)
	5+	1 (1.6)	0 (0)
Courses	0	30 (46.9)	51 (79.7)
	1	14 (21.9)	8 (12.5)
	2–4	15 (23.4)	5 (7.8)
	5+	5 (7.8)	0 (0)

In total, there were 225 climate-related offerings comprising all degree levels, modes of instruction, and courses included in the analysis, and only 30 of these were found to be related to climate and health. SUNY ESF offered 23% of all included climate related programs examined, seven of which were health-related. The University of Buffalo and Stony Brook University made up another 26.6% of all climate and health related programs. This means that over half of the climate and health offerings are coming from just three SUNY schools, all located in metropolitan counties (Fig. 2). While some of these programs were within health professional programs, like University of Buffalo’s Master of Public Health program, others were not. Many of the schools located in more rural or remote locations had no climate-related or climate and health related programs. Several schools that focus heavily on health education, such as SUNY Upstate Medical University and SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, had no health and climate related programs appear in our search.

Fig. 2.

Geographic distribution of climate and health programs within New York State, including between metropolitan (gray) and non-metropolitan (white) counties.

4. Discussion

Climate and health education within the SUNY system remains limited and unevenly distributed. Only 13.3% of climate-related programs and courses across SUNY addressed the intersection of climate and health, with most offerings found at just three institutions. Fewer than 1% of undergraduate programs included climate and health content, identifying a significant gap in the education infrastructure at a time when the health impacts of climate change are intensifying statewide. Several schools that focus heavily on health education had zero health and climate related programs appear in our search.

We found that most SUNY climate and health offerings were among major university centers, suggesting that institutional resources and available faculty expertise may play a role in where these programs are available. No programs were found in rural counties, which suggests that there may be a geographic disparity that limits access for healthcare professionals studying in rural areas. In addition to geographic disparities, the type of institution also plays a significant role in shaping access to climate education. Community colleges make up the largest number of SUNY institutions and offer multiple health programs, such as nursing, counseling, community health, emergency medical services, health studies, physical education, and public health. These community colleges enroll the largest number of students, but despite their scale and reach, they offer very few courses that address the intersection of climate and health. This inequity may lead to widening disparities in climate literacy and career opportunities in climate and health fields.

Previous work has demonstrated that climate and health content is increasingly being integrated into public health graduate programs, with tailored programs in about 40% of master-level educational programs globally [32]. Among accredited schools of public health in the United States, about half offered at least one climate and health course [15]. In an evaluation of climate and health initiatives among New England medical, public health, and physician assistant schools, 46% offered at least one initiative (e.g., course, position statement, student group, university center). Similar to our analysis though, 6 of the 51 institutions and associations analyzed housed the majority of initiatives (87%). Only 5 and 6 of the initiatives found were integration of climate and health into core and elective curriculum, respectively, with the largest category of initiatives being student groups, which we were unable to examine in this analysis.

These analyses also highlight the disparity in climate and health education among rural locations, as the majority of initiatives were in larger urban centers [16]. We believe the health impacts of climate change make this content relevant to many health-related fields beyond public health and medicine. The SUNY system offers over 400 health-related programs. The American Nurses Association encourages the integration of climate and health content into nursing curricula [33], emergency medical services suggest dedicated training on climate and health hazards [34], and physician assistant training programs have been asked to integrate climate change as a determinant of patient health [35]. With a more prepared health workforce, the resilience of communities improves, and we will be better able to mitigate health risks associated with climate change [27]. Additionally, increasing the health literacy of individuals within the community promises economic gain through preventing climate-associated hospitalizations and decreasing the burden of healthcare costs [36].

Barriers to implementing climate change and health education may include the lack of recognition from licensing organizations, prioritizing other educational content over climate change and health, intensities and crowding of current curricula, faculty knowledge of climate change, and inadequate resources to effectively lead courses in climate change. With a shifting federal funding landscape for public health and climate change work, the funding for expertise, and educational programs may also become more limited in the future [37], as may institutional prioritization of this topic.

As the SUNY system works to meet their Sustainability and Climate Action Plan [24] goals, the integration of interdisciplinary climate offerings for health professional learners should be explored. Climate change competencies should be integrated into health-relevant curricula across SUNY academic institutions, establishing opportunities for interprofessional learning, access to community engagement, and applied internships. Efforts should leverage interdisciplinary content development, which improves confidence in the ability to discuss the health impacts of climate change with others [38,39]. Adding courses at the community college level would make climate and health education more accessible and equitable, especially in rural communities. Growth in alternative learning formats [40], such as through asynchronous, virtual, remote, and hybrid learning can offer more flexible, accessible, and affordable educational formats.

SUNY also offers microcredentials, a condensed academic credential for high-demand fields [41]. A SUNY-wide climate and health microcredential could cover foundational competencies and an affordable way to improve the accessibility of this content for those pursuing health careers, such as students within nursing, public health, medical, or physician assistant programs. Upstate Medical University recently has launched a “Climate and Health Foundations for the Health Professional” microcredential for students on their campus [42].

SUNY recently has launched a Sustainability Faculty Fellowship program [43], where faculty across SUNY campuses will work to integrate interdisciplinary content on sustainability, allowing expertise to be shared across campuses, removing previously cited barriers due to lack of relevant expertise locally [4]. Additional efforts to allow cross-registration of courses, programs, and certificate programs across SUNY may allow knowledge sharing between campuses. SUNY campuses may also leverage existing free peer-reviewed resources, such as those available through the Global Consortium for Climate and Health Education, to integrate content and case studies into their existing courses and programs [44,45]. Given the state’s dedication to climate change mitigation and adaptation [46], NYS should ensure resources are available to grow climate and health expertise.

Our methodology leverages a cross-sectional review of publicly available materials, and some educational offerings may not be captured if they were not represented in public-facing materials or captured with our search terms, which is a limitation. However, we approached our search using a standardized protocol in a sequence designed to mimic the pathways through which students may seek this information from the SUNY system. This snapshot is likely an underestimate of current offerings given the growth in climate and health interest in recent years. We could not explore whether courses were required or electives, or the content of specific class sessions. We also did not explore student clubs, organizations, or research efforts, as these were difficult to capture systematically with our current methodology. Additional exploration would be beneficial to inform efforts to provide support, funding, and other resources to integrate students and community into climate change preparedness efforts. Despite these limitations, we believe these analyses offer important considerations for the future of SUNY education.

5. Conclusion

Climate and health education within the SUNY system, including within health-focused educational programs, remains limited and unevenly distributed. Expanding climate and health education initiatives across all SUNY institutions is a crucial step toward addressing disparities in improving climate resilience. Further integration of climate and health education can improve health outcomes for New Yorkers.

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

CRediT authorship contribution statement

Emily Sattora: Writing – review & editing, Project administration, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Brianna Dudley: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Karen Gonzalez: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Anthony Baker: Writing – review & editing, Methodology, Data curation, Conceptualization. Mus’ab Azam: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Aditya Kaliath: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Beverly Okanome-Adebiyi: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Saba Solomon: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis, Data curation. Augusta Williams: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Validation, Supervision, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization.

Declaration of competing interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.