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#Lead2020: Lead-Safe Homes, Healthy Families (Webinar #1)
Thanks to a grant from the National Center for Healthy Housing, the Virginia Poverty Law Center and the Richmond City Health District will be conducting a webinar series on lead contamination in homes in August and September, with the assistance of HousingForward Virginia. The goal of these events is to raise awareness about the dangers of lead contamination in homes across the Commonwealth.
The organizers hope to build a coalition that can work together towards fully abating lead from our housing stock and water systems. Panelists will discuss the long-term health impacts, current policy and initiatives to address the problem, and the necessity for additional legal, financial, and structural tools to ensure that lead poisoning becomes a thing of the past.
Webinar #1: Plumbum Persists: Housing and Public Health
Wednesday, August 19th, 2pm-3:30pm
Webinar #2: Paint, Pipes, and Poison: Pervasiveness and Proper Process
Wednesday, August 26th, 2pm-3:30pm
Webinar #3: Legally Speaking: Understanding the Legal Landscape of Lead
Wednesday, September 2nd, 2pm-3:30pm
Webinar #4: Lead-Free Future: A Call to Action
Wednesday, September 9th, 2pm-3:30pm
Webinar #1: Plumbum Persists: Housing and Public Health
In our first of four webinar sessions, Richmond City Health District and Virginia Poverty Law Center invite you to learn how lead continues to impact resident health across the Commonwealth on Wednesday, August 19th from 2:00 to 3:30pm. Lead-safe homes are crucial to ensuring healthy families and communities. This introductory webinar session will discuss the intersection of housing and health, as well as the long-term health impacts of lead exposure on children and adults. Whether in paint or pipes, lead poisoning is an environmental justice issue that deeply affects families, especially in aging rental units. With this first webinar session, we hope that you will gain a better understanding of why fully eradicating lead in the Commonwealth’s housing stock is a pressing concern.
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Speaker Bios
Dr. Danny Avula is director of the Richmond City and Henrico Health Districts. Dr. Avula has become a leading public health figure in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Jennifer Ross is a Medical Toxicology Fellow at the Blue Ridge Poison Center, an affiliate of University of Virginia Health. She is a pediatrician and toxicologist. 
Hope F. Cupit is the president and CEO of SERCAP, Inc., an agency dedicated to bringing safe drinking water to low-income rural residents of Virginia. SERCAP provides training, technical, and financial assistance to address water, wastewater, solid-waste, community development, and housing needs. 
Queen Zakia Shabazz is an author, educator, lecturer, and environmental justice advocate. She established United Parents Against Lead (UPAL) upon discovering that her young son had been poisoned by lead in 1996. UPAL is a national networking organization of and for parents seeking to end the threat of lead poisoning and other environmental hazards. Queen also serves on the Lead Service Line Replacement Collaborative.
