Published 12/19/25 | Written by Audrey Baker

Growing up on Long Island, Taylor Rijos experienced firsthand both the devastation of Hurricane Sandy and the community resilience that followed. “That’s what first sparked my interest in how human and environmental health systems connect,” she recalls. Later, the COVID-19 pandemic reinforced for her how closely human, animal, and environmental health are intertwined—a concept known as One Health.

“I was drawn to Cornell because One Health isn’t just a buzzword here—it’s really embedded in the MPH Program’s curriculum and philosophy,” says Rijos. “It shapes how students and partners think about public health and sustainability.”

During her time at Cornell, Rijos dove into projects across many disciplines. She joined Dr. Kathryn Fiorella’s research on the sometimes complicated regulations that govern fishing and fish consumption in New York State, contributed to a gender-focused scoping review with the Food Systems and Global Change Lab, and worked with the Cornell Health Impacts Core to develop a dashboard that provides guidance and resources about wildfire smoke and extreme heat risks.

A federal internship with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) took Rijos into new territory. Through the William M. Lapenta NOAA Internship Program, she joined the U.S. Arctic Observing Network, a coalition improving environmental monitoring across Alaska. She analyzed interviews with more than 40 agencies, research groups, and community organizations about the environmental risks they face, from sea ice loss and wildfires to landslides and, especially, flooding. “Flooding came up again and again—both coastal and riverine,” Rijos says. “It affects everything from infrastructure to food security.”

Working alongside an interdisciplinary team, she mapped the tools agencies were using, identified critical gaps, and examined how well monitoring systems aligned with community concerns. The team reviewed resources like FEMA’s risk mapping and the Alaska Water Level Watch, one of the localized observation networks in the state. “There are huge gaps in observation systems,” Rijos explains. “We were making the case for why certain hazards deserve more investment in monitoring and tools.”

The team’s ultimate goal is to help develop an open data platform that links societal concerns, like food security or disaster risk, with the monitoring tools that inform them. “The idea is a tool people can actually use to help make decisions in real time, especially in communities facing climate impacts,” she says. Now, she’s helping NOAA write a book chapter for the American Geophysical Union about the methodology behind this work—how qualitative insights and technical tools can come together to guide environmental and public health decisions.

Across all her projects, Rijos has learned to value curiosity, humility, and collaboration—whether with Indigenous leaders in Alaska, health agencies in New York, or partners across disciplines. “I’ve learned to ask questions rather than assume I know what people mean, and to really dig into different perspectives,” she reflects. “That’s how you build connections and understand communities’ needs—and then let those guide your thinking.”

This fall, Rijos brought this mindset to Albany, joining the New York State Department of Health’s Center for Environmental Health through the Excelsior Service Fellowship Program. In this new role with the Center’s Strategic Operations Unit, she’ll support projects across bureaus and divisions, working to protect communities and ecosystems through evidence-based policy at the state level.