CMSRU earns national recognition for leadership in climate health education
June 5
Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU) is emerging as a national leader in climate and environmental health education, earning an A- in the 2026 Planetary Health Report Card (PHRC) and ranking ninth among participating U.S. medical schools.
The recognition marks continued momentum for CMSRU, which improved from a B+ in 2025 and now stands among the top institutions nationally preparing future physicians to address the health impacts of climate change and environmental threats.
PHRC is a student-led international initiative that evaluates medical and other health professional schools on their commitment to planetary health — the intersection of human health and environment. Participating institutions are assessed across curriculum, research, community engagement, sustainability, and student advocacy, with results publicly shared to promote collaboration and accountability.
CMSRU’s performance reflects a deliberate institutional commitment to embedding climate and environmental health across all aspects of medical education while advancing the school’s role as a leader in the field.
“Environmental factors are increasingly shaping the health of our patients and communities, and medical schools have a responsibility to prepare future physicians to understand and meet those challenges,” said Annette C. Reboli, MD, dean of CMSRU. “This recognition reflects CMSRU’s longstanding commitment to innovative medical education, community engagement and scientific leadership. We are incredibly proud of our students and faculty for helping position CMSRU among the nation’s leaders in climate health education.”
“A key part of our success has been the leadership of Dr. Elizabeth Cerceo, whose vision has helped integrate climate health across our curriculum and position CMSRU at the forefront of this important field,” Reboli said.
Integrating climate health across the curriculum
Under the leadership of Elizabeth Cerceo, MD, professor of medicine and executive director of climate health education, CMSRU has become a model for integrating climate and environmental health throughout the medical school curriculum.
Rather than confining environmental topics to standalone electives, CMSRU has embedded climate health concepts across all four years of the curriculum. Students engage with topics such as infectious disease, pulmonary illness, heat-related conditions, environmental exposures, environmental justice and population health as part of their core medical education.
“At its core, climate health is about meeting the needs of patients,” said Cerceo. “Research consistently shows that environmental and climate-related factors significantly influence health outcomes. Medical education must evolve to prepare physicians for those realities.”
Nationally, more medical schools are incorporating climate health into their curricula, with estimates suggesting that nearly 70 percent now include some level of instruction. CMSRU stands out for the depth and breadth of its integration, preparing students to translate these concepts into clinical practice.
Lucas Garfinkel, a fourth-year medical student pursuing a Climate Health Scholarly Concentration, has helped coordinate CMSRU’s participation in the Planetary Health Report Card since its first year, playing a key role in tracking progress and advancing student-driven initiatives. His interest in climate health began as an undergraduate at Tulane University, where he saw firsthand how environmental challenges shaped daily life and community well-being.
“Being involved with the Planetary Health Report Card for all three years at CMSRU has been incredibly rewarding because it has shown me how student advocacy can lead to real institutional change,” Garfinkel said. “Watching our recommendations translate into curriculum improvements, sustainability initiatives, and new educational opportunities has reinforced my belief that climate health will be an essential part of training the next generation of physicians.”
Advancing education, research and leadership in climate health
CMSRU’s leadership extends beyond the classroom, reflecting a broader institutional focus on advancing climate health through education, research, advocacy and interdisciplinary collaboration.
Faculty and students are engaged in work examining the health impacts of climate change, healthcare sustainability, environmental justice and the environmental determinants of health. Through this work, CMSRU continues to contribute to growing national and international conversations about the role of medicine in addressing climate-related health risks.
A nationally recognized leader in the field, Cerceo has helped shape educational, research and policy initiatives at the state and national levels. Her work focuses on helping healthcare professionals understand how factors such as extreme heat, air pollution and climate-related disasters affect patient outcomes, further positioning CMSRU as a leader in this emerging discipline.
Medical specialty boards, including the American Board of Internal Medicine, have also begun incorporating climate-related concepts into certification frameworks, reflecting the increasing importance of environmental factors in patient care.
Preparing the next generation of physicians
As interest in climate and environmental health continues to grow, CMSRU is positioning itself at the forefront of preparing healthcare professionals to understand and address these evolving challenges.
“We’re hearing from prospective students that climate health education is one of the reasons they were interested in attending CMSRU,” Cerceo said. “Our students recognize that these issues are directly connected to the future of medicine and public health.”
Building on this momentum, CMSRU continues to expand opportunities in climate and environmental health education, research and professional training.
For CMSRU, the improved PHRC ranking reflects a broader commitment to preparing physicians to address both traditional and emerging health challenges facing patients and communities.
“As physicians, we care for people in the environments where they live,” Cerceo said. “Understanding climate and environmental health is becoming an essential part of delivering high-quality patient care.”