This School of Medicine International Program director has been a champion for sustainability on both the local and international level for years.
The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) Office of Sustainability would like to recognize Leslie Jamka as a Sustainability Champion! Jamka has been at UMB since 2016 and serves as an International Program director at the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD) within the School of Medicine, leading the day-to-day activities for a large multi-site project in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.
As an International Program director at CVD, Jamka thinks about environmental concerns and sustainability at the project level to help ensure efforts and activities continue long after project completion. Jamka’s key project involves typhoid vaccines. “With improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), typhoid cases decline or disappear, as seen in the United States and other developed countries. Typhoid continues to disproportionately impact low-income countries. The project focuses on vaccines as a tool that can be used in coordination with WASH efforts, including improved infrastructure,” says Jamka.
Outside of her work with international partners, Jamka looks for ways to get to know the UMB community. Jamka is part of the Workplace Mediation Service, volunteers at campus cleanups (thanks, Leslie!), and recently volunteered at Meals on Wheels with Women in Medicine and Science (WIMS).
As an environmental chemist by training, Jamka has long been an advocate for sustainability in her work. She has spent time cleaning up Superfund sites, working on restoration after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and doing environmental and hazardous materials activities for the Red Line Project, a proposed east-west transit line in Baltimore. Jamka transitioned to global public health after the Red Line Project was canceled and has been there ever since.
Jamka learned to waste nothing as a Peace Corps volunteer in Chad. At home, all food is consumed — her dog loves stems and peels, and overripe fruits and veggies are always smoothie-worthy. As a self-declared obsessive composter and recycler, there is very little trash in her home. Her work at home expanded into the community, where Jamka started a reduce, reuse, and recycle program at a local Baltimore City school when her children were young. Every day, Jamka was in the cafeteria helping kids manage recycling and composting and assisting with the school’s garden. Jamka was also involved in efforts to replace large, old trees in her Baltimore City neighborhood as they started to die. On average, the group planted 10 to 15 new trees each year. When she recently moved, she found herself in a tree-less yard. Since moving in, she has planted a cherry tree and five natives that will create shade, improve air and water quality, and provide habitat for many generations to come. Lastly, she uses her local Buy Nothing group to find used items, and she prioritizes taking public transportation, biking, or walking when possible.
One point that Jamka highlighted when asked what students, staff, and faculty could do to contribute to campus sustainability: Small efforts can have a big impact.
Some of her tips include:
“Pick up some trash as you walk through campus; pull a can or bottle out of the trash and put it in the recycle bin. Consider alternative transportation options — start with one day a week. Think before you print — do I need a hard copy? Consider shared resources or reuse and repair before purchasing. If you haven’t been to the Station North fix-it fair, it’s a must. Give away extra food after events through the Sustainability Office’s UMB FREE program and designate someone to ensure food is not wasted. There are plenty of creative ways to make this happen. And if I had a magic wand, all events would be green with participants bringing their own water bottles, plates, utensils, and coffee mugs,” she concludes.
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