HEALS – Pilot Projects

Center pilot grants are a major driver of career development,  providing postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty with mentorship and access to the Center’s core facilities. They also promote cross-collaboration across departments to encourage the application of environmental health concepts and methodology to other disciplines. In addition, the pilot project program enables Center Members to rapidly respond to community needs.

Over the past 10 years: 

  • 94 applicants received pilot funding awards of $20,000 to $70,000 each for a total of $2,750,107
  • 72 of 94 pilots were awarded to postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty 
  • 15 Community-Based Participatory Research pilot grants were awarded  
  • 24 pilots resulted in successful NIH grant applications (7 K99, 1 R03, 2 R21, 6 R00, 6 R01, 1 R35 and 1 UG3) for a total return on investment of $49,061,711 

2023 PILOT PROJECT APPLICATION- APPLY NOW

Grant YearAwarded AmountProject TitlePI NameMulti-PICo-InvestigatorsArea of Focus
2022 (2)$20,000Lead, Cognition, and Gut Microbiome Interactions with Nutrition (LoGIN)Shoshannah EggersVishal MidyaElza Rechtman, Chris GenningsBiostatistics
Endocrine Disruptors
Lead
Microbiome
2022 (2)$24,965Exposure to Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Functional Ovarian Reserve in MidlifeLauren PetrickElena ColicinoPFAS — Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances
Reproductive Health
Women’s Health
2022 (2)$25,000Inhibitory Control Mediates the Association between Prenatal Exposure to Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Child Body Mass IndexJamil LaneShelley LiuRobert Wright, Dania Valvi, Syam S AndraChildren’s Health
Mixtures/co-exposures
Obesity
PFAS — Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances
2022 (2)$25,000Neighborhood Scale Evaluation of Vehicle Emission Reduction Policies in Advocating Environmental Justice and Equality in NYCXueying ZhangRosalind Wright, Itai Kloog, Matthew WoodyAir Pollution
Climate Change
2022 (2)$25,000Lead (Pb), tooth mineral density and caries experience among adolescents.Aderonke AkinkugbeChristine Austine, Chris Gennings, Piyush Kumar, Nilsson Holguin, Martha Maria Tellez RojoChildren’s Health
Lead
2022 (2)$25,000Impact of PFAS in cord blood on offspring intestinal inflammation and dysbiosisManasi AgrawalDania Valvi, Vishal Midya, Lauren Petrick, Inga Peter, Jean-Frederic ColombelPFAS — Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances
2022 (2)$25,000Lead Exposure in Telecommunication WorkersAndrew ToddRabeea KhanJohn MeyerLead
2022 (2)$41,347Use of the realtime and historical “floodnet” data to determine the impact of flooding on the surge of acute respiratory illnesses in the specific densely populated flood prone New York City communities in 1 yearIsmail NabeelBrett BrancoIlias KavourasClimate Change
Lung Diseases
Weather Extremes
2022 (2)$50,000Environmental Disparities and the Risk of West Nile Virus in New York CityNicholas DeFelice Nicholas SteinerMathew J. WardClimate Change
2022 (2)$50,000The neuroimmune outcomes of prenatal exposures to air pollution and stressPinar AyataAlison G. LeeElena Colicino, Mathilda Chiu, Sheela Maru, Uday Patil, Steven N. ChillrudAir Pollution
Biomarkers
Children’s Health
Climate Change
Gene-Environment Interaction
Mixtures/co-exposures
2022 (1)$20,000The association between PM2.5 composition and sources and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease mortality among older adults.Maayan Yitshak-sadeElena Colicino, Allan Just, Michael Hadley, Alex Federman, Liuhua Shi, Joel Schwartz, Heresh AminiAir Pollution
2022 (1)$20,000The association between the built and social environment and phenotypic age accelerationPablo KnobelMaayan Yitshak-sadeElena Colicino, Itai Klog, Alex Federman, Charles Mobbs, Rachel LitkeBiomarkers
Exposome
Mixtures/co-exposures
2022 (1)$20,000Metal exposures and bone health in women during reproductive agingElena ColicinoLauren PetrickMegan Niedzwiecki, Megan Horton, Robert O Wright, Martha María Téllez-Rojo, Marcela Tamayo-OrtizMixtures/co-exposures
Reproductive Health
Women’s Health
2022 (1)$20,000Metabolomic features in dried blood spots of offspring of women with and without inflammatory bowel diseaseManasi AgrawalInga Peter, Lauren Petrick, Dinesh Kumar Barupal ,Francesca Petralia, Jean-Frederic Colombel“Biomarkers
Exposome
Microbiome
Mixtures/co-exposures
Toxicology”
2022 (1)$20,000Anti-Racism and Environmental Justice Scholars Pilot ProgramMalika GargMaida GalvezSarah Evans, Terry ThompsonOutreach/Community Engagement
2022 (1)$65,000Beneficial effects of tailored light intervention (TLI) on sleep and cognition in World Trade Center Responders, Recovery Workers, and Volunteers (WTC RRWV) cohort Ola AlsalmanRafael E de la Hoz, Mariana G Figueiro Occupational Health
2022 (1)$65,000Risk and protective factors and MRI phenotypes of frailty associated with WTC exposureMegan HortonFred Ko, Katherine Ornstein, William Hung, Elena Colicino, Ghalib BelloExposome
2021 (2)$25,000Association between Air Pollution, Stress, and Sleep Efficiency in 6 -7-year-old Children living in East Harlem.Terry ThompsonMaida GalvezRobert O. Wright, Sarah Evans, Leon Hsu, Ray Lopez, Luz Guel Air Pollution
2021 (2)$25,000The Impact of Prenatal Pesticide Exposure on Child Respiratory Outcomes in Mexico CityCecilia AlcalaMaria Jose RosaSyam Andra, Shelley Liu, Robert WrightAsthma
Children’s Health
Mixtures/co-exposures
Pesticides
2021 (2)$25,000School Ventilation and SARS-CoV-2 Test Positivity: A Community-Based StudyNicholas DeFelice Maida GalvezRachel Vreeman Alison Lee, Chris Gennings Nicole Bouvier Laura McGuinn Efrain GuerreroChildren’s Health
Outreach/Community Engagement
2021 (2)$25,000Air Pollution, Mitochondrial Heteroplasmy (MH), and Vaccine Efficacy in ChildrenMike HeMaayan Yitshak-Sade; Elena ColicinoItai Kloog, Allan Just, Corina Lesseur, Robert WrightAir Pollution
Children’s Health
Gene-Environment Interaction
2021 (2)$25,000Development of a novel retrospective biomarker of fluoride exposure using spatial mapping of teeth by laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS)Mauro MartinezChristine AustinManish AroraBiomarkers
Exposome
Toxicology

Download Full Pilot Grants Report