The United States Environmental Protection Agency has appointed two faculty members from New Mexico State University and one from Doña Ana Community College to serve on committees that aim to improve the environment and environmental health across the U.S.-Mexico border region.
The faculty members include Christopher Brown, professor of geography and environmental studies at NMSU; Becky Corran, professor of public health at DACC; and Jagdish Khubchandani, professor of public health sciences at NMSU.
Brown and Khubchandani will serve on the Good Neighbor Environmental Board. The board is an independent federal advisory committee that advises the president and Congress on good-neighbor practices along the U.S.-Mexico border. It focuses on environmental infrastructure needs within the states that neighbor Mexico.
“I am thrilled to once again join this prestigious committee and help improve our environment around the border area,” said Brown, who previously served on the board from 2006-2010.
Since arriving at NMSU in 2002, Brown has studied binational water resource issues on the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders. Brown’s areas of interest include binational water resource policy and the use of applied GIS tools to examine water quality and supply in twin city regions along the U.S.-Mexico border. He also served as the inaugural fellow for the NMSU Beyond Borders Community of Practice, which aimed to reboot NMSU’s border research and scholarship efforts.
Khubchandani, who arrived at NMSU in 2020, has broad research interests in global health and social epidemiology. During his time at NMSU, he has authored numerous studies on vaccine hesitancy and firearm fatalities. He also served on grant review panels for the National Institutes of Health and the Office of Assistant Secretary for Health.
“I am grateful to the EPA administrators for this appointment and look forward to contributing to the mission and vision of the EPA,” Khubchandani said. “It is a privilege to represent NMSU for this purpose.”
Corran will serve on the Local Government Advisory Committee, representing Las Cruces and southern New Mexico as an adviser to the EPA’s development of new environmental policies. She will also serve on the Reducing Plastic Pollution subgroup.
Corran, who sits on the Las Cruces City Council, arrived at NMSU in 2009. She teaches community health courses and has served as a department chair, Faculty Senate Chair and Provost’s Faculty Fellow on system integration. She recently became a board member for Roadrunner Food Bank.
“I look forward to sharing Las Cruces’ innovative approaches to environmental justice, while learning best practices from others across the country to address pollution and climate change,” Corran said.
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CUTLINE: Christopher Brown, left, and Jagdish Khubchandani, center, faculty members at New Mexico State University, and Becky Corran, right, faculty member at Doña Ana Community College, have been appointment to serve on United States Environmental Protection Agency committees. (NMSU/courtesy photos)