Dr. Takaro is a physician-scientist and Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University where he served two terms as Associate Dean for Research. He was trained in occupational and environmental medicine, public health and toxicology, at Yale, the University of North Carolina and University of Washington. Dr. Takaro’s research is primarily about the links between human exposures and disease, and determining effective public health based preventive solutions to such risks.
Planetary change poses complex problems for public health that demand an interdisciplinary approach both in research and action. In this vein, Takaro founded the Planetary Health Research group at SFU and a lead author of the Health Canada 2022 report, Health of Canadians in a Changing Climate: Advancing Knowledge for Action. His current research program explores the impacts of resource extraction on human health and the relationship to our land and waters. With immense gratitude to the First Peoples, he is beginning to use Indigenous knowledge to relearn environmental health as he tests different interventions in climate action and planet protection.