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UW center focuses on risky behaviors in young adults

The Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors at the University of Washington School of Medicine focuses much its work on young adults since health habits are often established at that age and risk behaviors peak during this time. The center investigates the harms that stem from high-risk behavior involving alcohol, including unsafe sexual behavior, sexual assault, aggression, accidents, and academic or work problems. The center also examines other topics that can affect well-being including cannabis use, gambling, use of…

Livable City Year seeking partner for the 2019-2020 academic year

Proposals are now being accepted from cities, counties, tribes and special districts interested in partnering with the University of Washington’s Livable City Year initiative for the 2019-2020 academic year. Livable City Year connects UW faculty and students with a municipal partner for a full academic year to work on projects fostering livability and sustainability. The municipal partner will identify a selection of projects in their community that could be addressed by Livable City Year courses. Areas of focus include environmental…

IHME releases the Global Burden of Disease 2017 study

The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation recently published the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2017 study. The GBD is a comprehensive, worldwide observational epidemiological study that describes mortality and morbidity from major diseases, injuries and risk factors to health at global, national and regional levels. It examines trends from 1990 to the present, which allows for comparisons across populations to better understand the changing health challenges being faced by people across the world. The GBD 2017…

Gift funds new UW Center for Integrative Oncology and Palliative Care Social Work

A substantial gift from Lynn and Howard Behar is expanding the University of Washington School of Social Work’s support for the next generation of oncology social work scholars through the launch of a new Center for Integrative Oncology and Palliative Care Social Work. The Center will take a social justice approach to oncology and palliative care services by working to address documented health disparities in cancer and end-of-life care based on race and ethnicity, disability, gender and sexual identity, geographic…

Developing a water advisory system for farmers in India

Farmers in India grow an assortment of crops, and while this variety can be a good thing, many farmers struggle with knowing how much water their crops require. As a result, crops are often over or under watered, which reduces their yield. To address this challenge, researchers from the University of Washington’s Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering are developing an irrigation advisory system, which is technology that will offer farmers precise information regarding how much and when to water…

UW ranked No. 10 in US News Best Global Universities

The University of Washington maintained its No. 10 spot on the latest U.S. News & World Report’s Best Global Universities rankings. The UW is second among American public institutions. The Best Global Universities methodology weighs factors that measure a university’s global and regional research reputation and academic research performance. For the overall rankings, this includes bibliometric indicators such as publications, citations and international collaboration. Learn More >

UW project connects excess dining hall food with local non-profit agencies

An idea for a human centered design and engineering class project at the University of Washington is now a fully-functional website that pairs UW dining halls with local shelters to coordinate food donations as a way of reducing food waste. The web platform, mealmatchup.org, works like this: Food providers log food donations and request pickups online. Trained food transporters then use the website to document proof-of-pickup and delivery, track food temperatures and navigate pickup and drop-off locations. Receiving agencies use…

Winter 2019 undergraduate course highlights population health research

The Population Health Initiative has again partnered with the University of Washington’s Undergraduate Research Program (URP) to offer a series of faculty lectures during winter quarter 2019 focused on the three pillars of population health: human health, environmental resilience and social and economic equity. The Research Exposed! (General Studies 391) course will feature faculty from a number of disciplines discussing their population health-related research. Undergraduates may take this course for credit (i.e., one credit/quarter; three quarters max). Each lecture is…

New report projects sea-level changes for Washington State

A new climate change report led by Washington Sea Grant and the University of Washington’s Climate Impacts Group details ocean level projections for more than 150 different sites along the Washington coastline. The report incorporates geology-driven land motion and provides the latest, probabilistic estimates to let planners weigh the risks of different scenarios, which allows planners to decide how they want to respond to, for instance, a water level with a 1 percent chance of occurring by a given year….

Reuters ranks the UW among top 5 most innovative universities in the world

The University of Washington is listed at No. 5 on the latest Reuters Top 100: The World’s Most Innovative Universities. This list ranks the educational institutions doing the most to advance science, invent new technologies and help drive the global economy. The ranking is an increase of two spots from last year, with the UW also maintaining its position as the top-ranked U.S. public institution on the list. Learn More >