Champions of Change
Dr. Yadira Caraveo has been an advocate since medical school. During residency, she was an active member of her resident union and advocated for improved working conditions for her colleagues and healthcare access for her patients and supported environmentally friendly candidates for public office. Receiving her training in pediatrics in New Mexico, a state with a number of coal-fired power plants, she saw firsthand the health effects of air pollution on her patients, particularly those with asthma and chronic lung diseases. Through a leadership program with the National Hispanic Medical Association she became involved with the work of the Union of Concerned Scientists and Voces Verdes. She provided insight into the medical perspective on climate change’s public health impacts and participated in a meeting with members of President Obama’s staff concerning emission standards for coal-fired power plants. Dr. Caraveo currently works as a general pediatrician in the Denver, Colorado metro area, where she was born and raised.