Valerie Thomas

About

Valerie Thomas holds the position of Anderson Interface Chair of Natural Systems at the Georgia Tech Carter School of Public Policy. Her role involves leading research and initiatives related to natural systems, with a focus on the interface between natural environments and human systems. She is responsible for advancing understanding and policy development in areas that intersect natural systems with societal needs. Her office is located in Groseclose 415, and she can be reached via phone at (404) 385-7254. Her work emphasizes the integration of natural systems into public policy frameworks, contributing to the development of sustainable and effective policies that address complex environmental and societal challenges.

Research topics

• Materials science
• Environmental science
• Waste management
• Chemistry
• Engineering
• Environmental chemistry
• Organic chemistry
• Chemical engineering

Selected publications

• Recent advancements of plant-based natural fiber–reinforced composites and their applications

  Composites Part B Engineering · 2020-08-10 · 717 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Relation of blood lead levels and lead in gasoline: an updated systematic review

  Environmental Health · 2022-12-26 · 97 citations

  reviewOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  BACKGROUND: Millions of tons of lead were added to gasoline worldwide beginning in 1922, and leaded gasoline has been a major source of population lead exposure. In 1960s, lead began to be removed from automotive gasoline. Removal was completed in 2021. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether removal of lead from automotive gasoline is associated with declines in population mean blood lead levels (BPb). METHODS: We examined published studies that reported population blood leaded levels for two or more…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Recovery of Critical Metals from Aqueous Sources

  ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering · 2021 · 93 citations

  Critical metals, identified from supply, demand, imports, and market factors, include rare earth elements (REE), platinum group metals, precious metals, and other valuable metals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and uranium. Extraction of metals from U.S. saline aqueous, emphasizing saline, sources is explored as an alternative to hardrock ore mining. Potential aqueous sources include seawater, desalination brines, oil-and-gas produced waters, geothermal aquifers, and acid mine drainage, among o…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• The push and pull of policy on life cycle assessment of low-carbon systems

  RSC Sustainability · 2026-01-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  This perspective explores emerging methodological challenges in applying life cycle assessment to low-carbon technologies in a policy-driven decarbonization landscape.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Energy Technology and Policy Innovation

  2026-01-01

  bookSenior author
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Geoffrey Collins

  University of Iowa

  19 shared

• Philip J. Landrigan

  Scientific Centre of Monaco

  19 shared

• Ruth C. Angrand

  Stony Brook University Hospital

  18 shared

• Dong Gu Choi

  11 shared

• John C. Crittenden

  Georgia Institute of Technology

  9 shared

• Dexin Luo

  9 shared

• Matthew J. Realff

  Georgia Institute of Technology

  9 shared

• Todd Levin

  Argonne National Laboratory

  9 shared

Education

• PhD, Physics

  Cornell University

  1987

Awards & honors

• Georgia Tech Class of 1934 Outstanding Interdisciplinary Awa…
• Fellow, AAAS
• Fellow, American Physical Society
• 2004-05 American Physical Society Congressional Science Fell…

Similar researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology

• Michael Elliotth-83
• Cassidy R. Sugimotoh-54
• Marilyn A. Brownh-43