CGD Lead Poisoning Bi-weekly Update, July 11

New Publications and Resources

• How Worried Should Expats Be about Lead Exposure? – Lee Crawfurd and Rachel Bonnifield. Argues that aid agencies and other international employers should include blood lead testing in duty-of-care policies for staff in high-burden countries, and that follow up testing of environmental exposures can be done at a low cost.

• A review of lead exposure source attributional studies – Christopher Kinally et al., Science of the Total Environment. A systematic review of 39 studies that link specific sources to blood lead levels across 26 countries. Finds industrial hotspots, occupational exposure, and deteriorated paint are major contributors, but data gaps and weak study designs limit source attribution. Calls for stronger research and regulation of lead in food, consumer products, and industrial emissions.

• Lead-attributable productivity losses in low- and middle-income countries – Bret Ericson and Mary Jean Brown, Health Economics, Policy and Law. Estimates GDP losses of 0.7 to 4.2% in LMICs due to reduced lifetime earnings from lead-induced cognitive impairment in children.

• Toolkit 4: Developing a country strategy and action plan for a lead-free future for every child – Partnership for a Lead-Free Future. Outlines steps for national governments to coordinate across agencies and sectors to address childhood lead poisoning, with guidance tailored to developing country contexts.

• Interdisciplinary Assessment of Children’s Lead Exposure in Residential Areas Degraded by Mining (Upper Meža Valley, Slovenia) – Bavec et al., Exposure and Health. Finds that a diet containing local foods can be an important source of lead in mining-contaminated areas.

• Lead-Induced Nephrotoxicity and Its Therapeutic Interventions: An Updated Review – Ankit Kumar Bharti & Abilash Valsala Gopalakrishnan, Biological Trace Element Research. Reviews emerging treatments of lead poisoning, including plant-based compounds and nanoparticle therapies, as alternatives to standard chelation. Highlights growing interest in biological interventions for lead toxicity.

Job Opportunities

• CGD is seeking a Policy Fellow to champion our work on lead exposure. The role involves managing a portfolio of research projects, engaging with external stakeholders, and contributing to CGD’s policy outreach. Candidates should have strong development and/or health policy experience and excellent communication skills; specific expertise on lead is not required. Based in DC or London, apply by July 21.

• Pure Earth is seeking a Vice President of Programs to oversee their global portfolio of environmental health programs in low- and middle-income countries.