We're now in Phase II of the Mountain West Hub! Read more here
Welcome to the Mountain West Alliance for Community Engagement on Climate & Health
Welcome to the Mountain West Hub
A collaborative partnership to promote strong and healthy rural and urban communities.
Based at the Colorado School of Public Health
This research was, in part, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Agreement OT2HL158287. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the NIH.
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Engaging Communities
Identifying Opportunities
Sharing Results
Our Work
This project seeks to understand how rural and urban communities in the Mountain West are experiencing environmental stressors (heat waves, drought, air quality, and wildfires), and what current and future actions they envision to build strong and healthy communities.
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Funded by the National Institutes of Health and led by a team based at the Colorado School of Public Health, the Mountain West Hub facilitates learning and builds partnerships among community members, scientists, public health practitioners, and policy professionals to work towards community resilience.
Project Geography
The Mountain West Hub is currently focused on two communities in Colorado, one rural and one urban: The San Luis Valley (SLV) and West Denver.
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Like much of the US Mountain West, these communities face a number of environmental challenges, such as:
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More frequent wildfires
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Hotter seasons
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Persistent droughts
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Unsafe air quality
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While no communities are truly shielded from these threats, the burden is not shared equally. Communities facing historical and current under-investment are experiencing environmental impacts first and hardest. These communities include urban areas like West Denver, and rural communities like those in Colorado’s San Luis Valley.
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Communities like West Denver & SLV are leading the charge to tackle environmental challenges head-on and build more resilient systems across the region. Any efforts to chart a healthier future must center the voices and leadership of our most impacted residents and build authentic and reciprocal partnerships across sectors, communities, and areas of expertise.
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Below is a map of the San Luis Valley and West Denver featuring county Colorado EnviroScreen Score Percentiles, which reflects the environmental health of an area compared to other counties in Colorado. The higher a percentile, the greater the environmental health burden the county is experiencing relative to other areas. West Denver neighborhoods are circled in green.
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West Denver is made up of six neighborhoods: Sun Valley, West Colfax, Villa Park, Barnum, Barnum West, and Valverde. The combined population is about 39,000 residents and, as the name suggests, this area is located in the southwest portion of Denver. West Denver has both natural features, like gulches, the South Platte River, and neighborhood parks, as well as major streets connecting the Denver Metro area and greater regional commerce. West Denver is rich in culture, history, and is home to many local businesses. You can learn more about West Denver neighborhoods in the West Area Plan, created by the City and County of Denver.
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The San Luis Valley is a rural intermountain desert valley located in south-central Colorado, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains and adjacent to the New Mexico border. The SLV is about the size of Connecticut and has an estimated population of 45,600. The San Luis Valley is known for its agriculture, especially potato and barley farming, as well as Sand Dunes National Park. With the Rio Grande river flowing through the SLV, waterways are central to communities in the valley. You can learn more about the San Luis Valley in this Story Map, created by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
Phase 1 Activities
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Convene Advisory Boards
We've brought together four advisory boards who are experts in the San Luis Valley, West Denver, Climate Science and/or Public Policy and Practice. Throughout the first year of this project, advisory boards will share their expertise of how our changing environment impacts the West Denver and San Luis Valley.
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Conduct Interviews
The Colorado School of Public team conducted interviews with advisory board members to hear their stories and shape the direction of our work. These interviews, along with regular meetings, help to hold our work accountable to community needs and wants.
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Develop "Mountain West Climate-Health Hub: Community Voices, Volume 1"
Phase II: DIY Air Filters
During Phase I of the Mountain West Hub (MWH), local communities identified air quality as a major concern linked to environmental stressors such as heat, drought, land management practices, and wildfire smoke. These environmental challenges have resulted in elevated levels of particulate matter (PM), which are associated with adverse health outcomes such as asthma exacerbations, cardiovascular issues, and respiratory diseases. The Phase II study aims to address environmental health disparities, focusing on air quality exposures in rural and urban communities in Colorado's San Luis Valley (SLV) and West Denver (WD).
Specifically, this study will address three aims: 1) evaluate impacts of intervention on air filter adoption, use, and maintenance (behavioral outcomes); 2) evaluate impacts of air filters on exposure to indoor PM associated with ambient PM due to environmental stressors; and 3) evaluate impacts of air filters on health outcomes (physical and mental health) and biomarkers of exposures (urinary markers). Below is a visualization of our conceptual framework:
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This community-driven intervention has the potential to reduce health disparities associated with environmental air quality exposures and serve as a model for similar communities in the Mountain West region and beyond.
