Where Science Meets Policy: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Policy Reform

Kennedy Butler¹

Special thanks to the following individuals for generously contributing their time editing: Amber Kinsey², Loretta Hseuh³, Biswadeep Dhar⁴, Sukhpreet Tamana⁵, Kelly Palmer², Priyanshi Sharma⁶, Madeline McClinchie⁷, Kristen Allen-Watts²  - Diabetes SIG

Science and policy are two distinct disciplines; however, they can be combined to benefit society as a whole. As a graduate research scientist and policy advocate, I have successfully integrated the two to improve health outcomes for residents of Birmingham, Alabama.

As a graduate research scientist studying how individuals with Type 2 Diabetes cope with their illness in rural Alabama, I am familiar with the high prevalence of health disparities in the region. Many of these disparities stem from increasing socio-economic strain, which influences how people seek out and manage their care. The relationship between health disparities, care management, and the socio-environmental challenges of the rural South is fundamentally shaped by the policies that govern these systems.

Understanding why individuals in the rural South experience poorer health outcomes than those in urban areas helps to facilitate the recognition of the bridge between policy and disparity. Although creating new policies to correct the practices of the old can be challenging, utilizing research that informs and supports the implementation of new policies to dismantle systemic barriers can offer concrete solutions.

Taking on the role of a health policy advocate enabled me to collaborate with the Greater Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP), a climate and environmental justice advocacy organization. Together, we worked toward GASP's goal: to present the Climate Action Resolution to Birmingham City Council members to promote climate equity among Birmingham's most vulnerable residents.

The climate action resolution was simple, addressing five tenets:

1. Pedestrian Safety & Walkability
2. Public Transportation Improvements
3. Government Transparency & Community Engagement
4. Flood Resilience & Stormwater Management
5. Heat Resilience & Climate Adaptation

These are areas in which the city could improve, as Birmingham, Alabama "ranked 39th out of 101 metro areas as the most dangerous metropolitan area for pedestrians," according to the National Complete Streets Coalition (Gann, 2024), and "ranked fourth worst in the Southeast for ozone pollution" due to extreme heat and pollution, according to the American Lung Association (McArthur, 2025). Working with GASP made it abundantly clear that Birmingham needed to revitalize its environmental health policies to benefit the lives of its residents.

As a scientist studying Type 2 Diabetes management and disparities, writing policies on climate equity initially felt out of my wheelhouse. However, upon further inspection, extreme heat and air pollution driven by climate change may have more to do with the prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes than I initially realized. According to a study on the long-term effects of air pollution on the prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes, it was found that the prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes is higher among people living in high-traffic urban areas with increased exposure to air pollutants (Meng et al.2023). Regarding extreme heat, individuals with Type 2 Diabetes who live in urban heat islands, who are also more likely to be African American or Non-White Hispanic, are more likely to experience dehydration, which contributes to hyperglycemia and increased risk for diabetes-related morbidity and mortality (Americares & Harvard Chan C-CHANGE, n.d.).

This understanding of how air quality and pollution, extreme heat, and neglected city infrastructure together contribute to health disparities informed our approach to drafting the climate resolution. We prioritized the needs of residents who were most vulnerable to climate-related illnesses.

At the Birmingham City Council Meeting, I relayed this message:

"The solutions described in the resolution are designed to improve the quality of life for Birmingham residents, especially for those in climate-vulnerable areas. With this resolution, we hope that the city of Birmingham and its residents will be empowered to take meaningful, community-driven action toward a healthier, more resilient Birmingham (K. Butler, personal communication, April 20, 2025)."

On April 20th, 2025, the Climate Action Resolution was passed by the Birmingham City Council. This success was reflected in the deliberate integration of Birmingham residents' lived experiences, public health data, and the environmental impact of climate change in urban areas. This work affirmed to me that science does not just belong in our university laboratories but also in the legislative process that shapes people's daily lives.

Affiliation:

1. University of Alabama at Birmingham; College of Joint Health Sciences
2. University of Alabama at Birmingham; Department of Medicine
3. University of Illinois Chicago; College of Liberal Arts and Sciences 
4. University of Maryland Eastern Shore; School of Agricultural and Natural Sciences 
5. University of British Columbia; Department of Pediatrics
6. University of California, Berkeley, College of Computing, Data Science, and Society
7. Texas Tech University; Department of Psychology

References:

1. Heather Gann, hgann@al.com. (2024, July 1). How safe are Birmingham pedestrians? Al. https://www.al.com/news/2024/07/how-safe-are-birmingham-pedestrians.html
2. Meng, Y.-Y., Yu, Y., Babey, S., & Su, J. (2023). Long-term air pollution exposures on Type 2 diabetes prevalence and medication use. Hygiene and Environmental Health Advances, 7(2773–0492). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heha.2023.100062
3. Americares & Harvard Chan C-CHANGE. (n.d.). Diabetes and heat. In Americares. https://www.americares.org/wp-content/uploads/PROVIDERS-Heat-Diabetes-and-Heat-V1.pdf
4. Danny McArthur, Gulf States Newsroom. (2025, April 23). ALA: Birmingham 4th worst in Southeast for ozone pollution. WBHM 90.3. https://wbhm.org/2025/birmingham-ranked-4th-worst-in-southeast-for-ozone-pollution-new-ala-report-says/