Nancy Long Sieber

Adjunct Lecturer on Physiology

Department of Environmental Health

Research, Administrative Work, and Teaching

Dr. Sieber’s work focuses on human physiology and how human health is affected by the physical and psychosocial environment.  She has a particular interest in human resilience in the face of poverty, natural disasters, and war.  She is also interested in the physiology of aging, and in creating communities that keep people healthy and independent through their later years.

Dr. Sieber was the founding executive director of the Lown Scholars Program, an organization that trains and supports researchers from low and middle income countries whose work is focused on the prevention of non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.  She also served as the executive director of the Metal Mining Environment and Health Alliance, and she organized a symposium entitled, “The Life Cycle of Metals:  Improving Health, Environment and Human Security”, which was held in Tokyo in November, 2011.  She is currently working with the Air Pollution and Health GeoHealth project,, based at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Public Health Foundation of India.  This project examines the impact of air pollution in India, and also trains Indian scientists so that they can assess and respond to environmental health concerns in their home country.

Dr. Sieber also teaches physiology and pathophysiology.  She co-teaches “Human Physiology”(EH205)  and “Human Pathophysiology” (EH208) at the School of Public Health, as well as a Harvard undergraduate General Education course, called “Human Physiology:  From Personal to Public Health” (SLS-17) and two Harvard Extension School courses, “Human Pathophysiology  1 and 2” (BIOS 162a and b).

Education

B.A., 1985, Oberlin College
Ph.D., 1989, University of Michigan