Samantha Romanick

Dr. Samantha (Sami) Romanick is a molecular biologist with an interest in studying the effects of microplastic exposure to human health. Since 2014, Dr. Romanick has made a commitment to do her part to help curb plastic pollution by omitting plastic waste from her home, educating her community on the issue, starting up a small retail business to offer alternatives to household single-use plastic items, as well as teaching K-12 and college students about the plastic waste problem. Dr. Romanick directed her own scientific career to study how microplastics effect human health at the University of Rochester for her postdoctoral training. Since then, she has been involved in many personal and professional zero waste and sustainability initiatives, from organizing composting and recycling at community events and festivals, composting and researching microplastic pollution in the Black Rock Desert, and promoting sustainable labs at academic institutions. Dr. Romanick also founded the Microplastic Workgroup of Western New York that includes over 70 participants from 22 different organizations across NY and Canada with an interest in microplastics research.

Dr. Romanick is a member of the Physicians and Scientists Network Addressing Plastics and Health (PSNAP) nonprofit, contributing plastics on health related information to clinics and is a board member of Save Our Sodus (SOS) nonprofit based in Sodus Bay, NY.

Dr. Romanick has joined the Environmental Working Group (EWG) as an Analytical Chemistry Fellow to startup a plastic program, focusing on plastics in food and consumer products. In this position, Dr. Romanick hopes to push policy with evidence-based science on the human health harm of microplastics and plastic pollution.