Our Staff
Dr. Adesanya founded E212 in the mid-1990s to meet the environmental data and monitoring needs of underserved communities. During his twenty years as Executive Director he successfully led the Institute in obtaining funding from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Energy, and NASA, among other funding entities. Projects under his leadership included: the development of an environmental database; environmental community monitoring through remote sensors; improving community access to environmental information resources and databases; community environmental education and training on topics including solid waste management, storm water, pollution prevention and best practices to minimize environmental hazards in homes. As Founder and with decades of experience in environmental monitoring and assessment, pollution prevention and environmental education, Dr Adesanya continues in an active role in the daily operations and activities of E212.
Dr. Adesanya is also a scientist, engineer, principal investigator, and educator. Additionally, Dr. Adesanya has more than 20 years of extensive experience in mathematical modeling and experimental design. The modeling activities range from the application of computational fluid dynamics techniques to the characterization of emissions, from Integrated Gasification Combine Cycle (IGCC) systems, to image processing for remote sensing applications. Over the last ten years, Dr. Adesanya has added leadership of transportation systems design and improvement. In this capacity, he incorporates an environmental justice lens to minimize negative impacts and maximize benefits to local communities. Dr. Adesanya holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Mathematics from Clemson University.
Louise C. Palmer is a sociologist, public health leader, scholar, British American, and mother. Louise is a dedicated, passionate advocate for health for all, achieved through community-driven programs, research studies, and supportive policy change. As climate issues intensify around the world, disproportionately impacting historically disenfranchised communities, Louise believes that tackling environmental health issues are the most critical health equity issue of our time.
Louise brings technical and leadership experience from a 20-year career in both public and private sectors throughout the U.S. and globally. As an applied sociologist, Louise designed and implemented dozens of community-driven programs and research studies to address health disparities and inequities. Her projects span the full spectrum of health topics from water and sanitation to maternal and child health, to people with disabilities. Louise develops initiatives that are both low and high-tech as determined by community needs.
Louise believes in a public health approach grounded in community partnership epitomized by the disability justice principle “nothing about us without us.” As Executive Director of E2I2 she seeks to leverage public and private funding and state-of-the-art technologies to translate the power of community knowledge and resiliency into sustainable and effective interventions, programs, and policies that protect against environmental and climate harms.
Louise holds a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology from University College London, a Master of Arts in Sociology from Georgia State University and is currently a Sociology PhD Candidate at Georgia State University. She is the recipient of numerous funding awards from the National Institutes of Health, health research organizations, and philanthropic funding organizations. Programs she has designed have won multiple public health awards.
Contact info: lpalmer@e2i2.org
Nkechi Azubuike is passionate about people, research and promoting behavior change. She plans and manages research projects while managing the related administrative tasks such as preparing progress reports, setting up and maintaining databases, and managing documentations. She conducts data collection, analysis, and visualization. A stickler for measurement and evaluation, she is particular about using evidence derived from research to inform interventions in health and social services.
Nkechi has over 10 years of experience working in clinical trial data management, reporting of analytics, conducting experiments, surveys, interviews and focus groups.
Nkechi manages and runs concurrent projects for E2i2 by providing technical assistance in various areas of projects via:
a) Data Analysis – Structuring comparative analysis for disadvantaged communities with the aid of EPA’s Environmental Justice Screening tool (EJ Screen), providing technical assistance for EJ communities with the aid of Climate and Environmental Justice Screening Tool (CJEST mapping tool), providing technical aid to disadvantaged communities by way of cleaning up unstructured data for data analysis through community-specific data collection, analysis, and visualization. In that way, the communities can tell their stories through actionable data.
b) Air Monitoring Project – Providing continuous air quality monitoring sensors that would detect the target pollutants of concern that are hazardous to human subjects and in turn, identify ways to mitigate these threats.
A product of diverse disciplines, Nkechi holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Chemical Engineering from the University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria, ACCA Diploma in Accounting and Business, and a Master of Science in Information Technology from the National Open University of Nigeria. She is a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP).
With a dedication to effective communication, process development and community engagement, Parul Benders brings 15 years of invaluable experience to the forefront of every endeavor. As a seasoned professional, Parul is driven by a passion for fostering meaningful connections and ensuring that messages resonate powerfully.
Parul is a Senior Operations Administrator with Intellectual
Concepts, LLC and supports E2i2 operations including overseeing their
communications and engagement strategy and managing the proposal development
and submission process. Parul’s commitment to process development has been a
guiding force, shaping strategies that optimize efficiency and yield impactful
results. This process-driven mindset has not only enhanced operational
excellence but has also positioned Parul as a trusted leader in the field. Parul’s
journey in proposal development is also integral to her multifaceted skill set.
By crafting compelling proposals, she merges her communication experience with
a strategic approach, articulating ideas that resonate with stakeholders.
Beyond professional achievements, Parul has actively engaged
in political and social justice work within the community, demonstrating an
unwavering commitment to making a positive impact. This dedication extends
beyond the workplace, reflecting Parul’s belief in the transformative power of
collective action. She currently works with the Cobb County Democratic
Committee with social media communications, event coordination and engagement
activities.
Parul has a BS in Business Management from University of
Phoenix and is a CSM (Certified Scrum Master) and a Certified CMMI Associate.