PROPOSAL SUMMARY: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM OF UNIVERSITIES AGENCIES AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS LOCATED IN THE CARIBBEAN REGION WILL CHARACTERIZE THE PERIODIC TRANS-ATLANTIC DISPERSAL OF AFRICAN DUST AND ITS IMPACTS ON THE HEALTH OF PEOPLE IN SMALL ISLAND STATES (SIS) OF THE REGION. OVER 20 MILLION TONS OF MINERAL DUST FROM AFRICA ARE TRANSPORTED EVERY YEAR BY THE TRADE WINDS TO THE CARIBBEAN AND IS DEPOSITED ACROSS A BROAD SWATH SPANNING BRAZIL TO THE SOUTHEASTERN USA. WE PROPOSE TO CHARACTERIZE THE DISTRIBUTION PATTERN AND VARIABILITY OF DUST IN THESE ANNUAL EVENTS USING SYNOPTIC EARTH OBSERVATIONS FROM SATELLITES AND GROUND STATIONS AND QUANTIFY THE IMPACT ON RESPIRATORY DISEASES USING DETAILED TIME HISTORIES OF MEDICAL RECORDS FROM CARIBBEAN SIS. THE GOAL IS TO DEVELOP A FORECASTING ABILITY FOR HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS FOR HUMAN POPULATIONS IN SIS DISAGGREGATED BY GENDER AGE GROUP AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC INDICATORS. THE LONG-TERM OBJECTIVE IS TO INCREASE THE USE OF NASA SATELLITE SENSORS AND GROUND AEROSOL OBSERVATIONS TO GUIDE SURVEILLANCE EARLY WARNING AND RISK ASSESSMENT OF POTENTIAL PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES. TO ADDRESS THE VARIOUS ELEMENTS OF THE RESEARCH THE PROPOSING TEAM WILL CREATE THREE WORKING GROUPS: A) RESILIENCE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELL BEING; B) ATMOSPHERIC FORCING AND AIR QUALITY; AND C) DECISION SUPPORT TOOL: COMPUTATION AND VISUALIZATION. THE THREE GROUPS WILL WORK CLOSELY TOGETHER TO IMPLEMENT AND TRANSITION THE HUMAN HEALTH APPLICATION TO LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS. THE TEAMS WILL 1) PROVIDE GROUND-BASED AEROSOL DATA TO IMPROVE REMOTE SENSING ESTIMATES OF AFRICAN DUST IN THE CARIBBEAN. 2) EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF AFRICAN DUST OUTBREAKS ON THE ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC HEALTH (INCLUDING ASTHMA RATES HYPERTENSION CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES) BY SOCIOECONOMIC FACTOR (AGE GENDER EDUCATIONAL LEVEL LANGUAGE INCOME); AND 3) IMPROVE FORECASTING OF ARRIVAL OF AFRICAN DUST OUTBREAKS IN THE CARIBBEAN AND PUBLIC HEALTH RISK. SOCIAL SCIENTISTS INCLUDING PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTITIONERS AND ATMOSPHERIC SCIENTISTS WILL CO-DEVELOP SOLUTIONS AND CREATE A PUBLIC HEALTH EARLY WARNING SYSTEM THAT INTEGRATES THE VARIOUS ENVIRONMENTAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH DATA. THE PROJECT WILL ENGAGE COMMUNITIES THAT ARE TYPICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED IN THE US STEM WORKFORCE. THE PROJECT IS DESIGNED TO ADDRESS UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL (UN SDG; UN AGENDA 2030) AND THE GEO STRATEGIC PLAN 2016-2025. THE WORK IS ALIGNED WITH UN-SDG GOAL 3: "ENSURE HEALTHY LIVES AND PROMOTE WELL-BEING FOR ALL AT ALL AGES". SPECIFICALLY WE ADDRESS TARGET 3.9: BY 2030 SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCE THE NUMBER OF DEATHS AND ILLNESSES FROM HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS AND AIR WATER AND SOIL POLLUTION AND CONTAMINATION ; AND TARGET 3.D STRENGTHEN THE CAPACITY OF ALL COUNTRIES IN PARTICULAR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES FOR EARLY WARNING RISK REDUCTION AND MANAGEMENT OF NATIONAL AND GLOBAL HEALTH RISKS . SIMILARLY THE GEO STRATEGIC PLAN 2016-2025 SEEKS TO SUPPLEMENT SOCIETAL BENEFIT AREAS AND PUBLIC HEALTH SURVEILLANCE TAKING IN CONSIDERATION ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND HEALTH RISKS. THIS RESEARCH PROPOSAL IS ALSO ALIGNED WITH NASA SCIENCE PLAN STRATEGIC GOAL (2014) ADVANCE UNDERSTANDING OF EARTH AND DEVELOP TECHNOLOGIES TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE ON OUR HOME PLANET THE OBJECTIVE ADVANCE KNOWLEDGE OF EARTH AS A SYSTEM TO MEET THE CHALLENGES OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE AND TO IMPROVE LIFE ON OUR PLANET AND NASA SCIENCE MISSION DIRECTORATE EARTH SCIENCES DIVISION FOCUS AREAS IN ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION AND CLIMATE VARIABILITY. OUR PROJECT WILL HAVE OUTCOMES THAT ARE RELEVANT TO OTHER COMMUNITIES IN THE REGION AND THAT CAN BE IMPLEMENTED IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD.