Sam Heft-Neal

sam heft neal

Sam Heft-Neal, PhD

  • Research Scholar

Y2E2 room 369
Stanford, CA 94305

Biography

Sam Heft-Neal is a research fellow at the Center on Food Security and the Environment and in the Department of Earth System Science. Sam is working with Marshall Burke to identify the impacts of extreme climate events on food availability and childhood nutrition in Africa. Specifically, they are examining the impacts of climate induced food shocks on child health measures including child mortality rates. Sam’s previous work examined the non-linear relationship between agricultural productivity and the environment and its effects on human health and the economy. Sam holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of California, Berkeley and a B.A. in Statistics and Economics from the same institution.

publications

Working Papers
June 2020

The Changing Risk and Burden of Wildfire in the US

Author(s)
cover link The Changing Risk and Burden of Wildfire in the US

In The News

farm workers
News

Extreme heat’s impacts on laborers

FSE researcher and other Stanford experts explain extreme heat’s impacts on workplace risks, marginalized communities, and the economy.
cover link Extreme heat’s impacts on laborers
Orange smokey skies over San Francisco
News

Wildfire smoke exposure during pregnancy increases preterm birth risk, Stanford study finds

Smoke from wildfires may have contributed to thousands of additional premature births in California between 2007 and 2012. The findings underscore the value of reducing the risk of big, extreme wildfires and suggest pregnant people should avoid very smoky air.
cover link Wildfire smoke exposure during pregnancy increases preterm birth risk, Stanford study finds
 A man walks through a sandstorm in Chad
News

Air Pollution's Connection to Infant Mortality

The study of sub-Saharan Africa finds that a relatively small increase in airborne particles significantly increases infant mortality rates. A cost-effective solution may lie in an exotic-sounding proposal.
cover link Air Pollution's Connection to Infant Mortality