Rima Habre, ScD, MSc

Biography

Dr. Habre is an Associate Professor of Environmental Health and Spatial Sciences at the University of Southern California. Her research aims to understand the effects of co-occurring environmental exposures, air pollution mixtures and social stressors on the health of vulnerable populations across the life course. She develops methods to advance personal exposure assessment using personal monitoring (e.g., wearables, sensors), geolocation, and machine-learning based spatiotemporal models.

As a native of Beirut, Lebanon, Dr. Habre attended the American University of Beirut for undergraduate studies in Environmental Health (2006). She then completed a Master of Science in Environmental Health in the Harvard Cyprus Program (2007).

Dr. Habre then joined the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and trained with Professor Petros Koutrakis. She received her Doctor of Science in Environmental Health (2012) with a concentration in exposure science, air pollution and biostatistics.

Dr. Habre co-chairs the Geospatial Working Group in the national NIH Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program. She co-leads the Exposure Sciences Research Program and the Exposure Factors Core in the Southern California Environmental Health Sciences Center (NIEHS). She is also the Director of Exposure Assessment in two large research centers (NIH OD/NIEHS/NIMHD) at USC investigating the effects of air pollution exposure over the life course and during pregnancy on maternal and child health.

She is also a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) Standing Committe on Use of Emerging Science for Environmental Health Decisions (2022-2023) and the NASEM Emerging Science on Indoor Chemistry committee and consensus study (2021-2023).  

Research Interests

1. Developing measurement and modeling methods for advancing air pollution exposure science
2. Use of real-time mHealth technologies, personal monitoring, sensors, geolocation and informatics for precision environmental health
3. Epidemiological investigations of the effects of air pollution mixtures and sources on the health of vulnerable populations across the life course
4. Cumulative impact of environmental health disparities on exposure and health burden in affected populations