New educational resources, connections and research-backed strategies emerged from the 2026 National PFAS Conference at the University of Arizona, where 424 participants focused on addressing the health and environmental impacts of PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. The event also drew national attention to PFAS challenges affecting Arizona’s border region and tribal communities.

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PFAS is a large family of synthetic compounds that have been used since the mid-20th century in household products and industrial processes. They are often called "forever chemicals" because they break down very slowly and have been detected in the blood of nearly everyone tested for them. Exposure has been linked to cancer and a range of other health concerns, according to the United Nations Environment Programme. 

The conference's 49 speakers advanced the evolving understanding of PFAS by highlighting efforts in medical and environmental research, remediation, education and community engagement. The three-day event was designed to connect lived experience with scientific research.  

“We must learn to work together and to hear the voices of those directly affected so that we can prevent future harm and develop equitable solutions,” said conference co-chair Paloma Beamer, associate dean of community engagement and professor in the U of A Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health and director of the Community Engagement Core for the Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center, or SWEHSC.

A foundation of collaboration

This year marked the first time the conference was hosted west of the Mississippi River. Phil Brown launched the conference series in 2017 at Boston’s Northeastern University, where he is a University Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Health Sciences. When choosing where to hold the event every other year, organizers look for a location offering both active advocacy groups and robust academic activity around PFAS, he said. 

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“In these places, the scientists already have a tradition of working with the community,” Brown said.

That combination was in place in Tucson, where researchers from the U of A engage with the community and collaborate in statewide efforts with Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University. This 2026 event was also the first to dedicate focus to needs faced by tribal nations, Brown said.

One session examined PFAS-related issues affecting Indigenous populations, including data gaps, legal and policy considerations, and the effects of contamination on traditional activities such as fishing and hunting. Citizens of 12 tribal nations were among the speakers and attendees.

Speakers also addressed PFAS in wastewater treated at the Nogales International Wastewater Treatment Plant, a binational facility that processes flows from communities and industries in the Arizona-Sonora border region.

Organizers offered two pre-conference tour options. Beamer led the tour of the plant and its surrounding area.

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“It meant a lot to take a field trip to the border,” she said. “It was important to bring participants from across the country here to see our environment and discuss solutions for the communities represented here.”

From research to results

Researchers who presented recent and emerging findings were accompanied by speakers who shared how PFAS contamination, as well as mitigation measures, have affected them. 

Orion Godfrey, who is state cancer coordinator for the Professional Fire Fighters of Arizona, kicked off a conference session discussing PFAS removal from the human body. 

Godfrey was a co-author and a research champion for a recent study that identified factors associated with elevated levels of PFAS among U.S. career firefighters, as well as policies and practices expected to reduce exposure risks. It was led by University of Arizona researchers through the Fire Fighter Cancer Cohort Study. 

Godfrey is grateful to the team for providing actionable insights. Firefighters’ occupational exposure is classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. While firefighters understand this, they love the job and aren’t going anywhere, he said.

“Now we're able to say, ‘Yes, this job is very hazardous, but here are some things you can do – and not just low-level things.’ We're seeing real reduction of the toxic effects from these exposures, and that is massive,” Godfrey said. 

U of A researchers are conducting additional firefighter studies to inform targeted interventions, promote safer occupational practices and guide policy recommendations. In the meantime, the study’s results have already guided facility and operational upgrades at the Goodyear, Arizona, Fire Department, where Godfrey is a captain. His station now has water filtration systems, ventilation that helps keep toxins out of living quarters and procedures for cleaning and rotating protective gear to reduce exposure.

Sustaining the effort

Conference planning took nearly two years and involved seven U of A colleges. In addition to public health, speakers represented the College of Agriculture, Life and Environmental Sciences; the James E. Rogers College of Law; the Eller College of Management; the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences; the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy; and the College of Science. Members of a local planning committee worked with the National PFAS Contamination Coalition and a network of centers, including the SWEHC, that are funded by the National Institutes of Health. The Office of Research and Partnerships helped coordinate university involvement, and the Provost’s Scholarly Engagement Fund provided support.

That preparation period allowed university researchers to start determining how best to collaborate on PFAS issues and inform the public about the work being done at the U of A to reduce the impact of PFAS in Arizona and the nation and around the world. 

The SWEHSC updated its PFAS guidance with Spanish-language materials that debuted at the conference. The center also offers guidance for healthcare providers that is now supplemented with additional continuing medical education that will be published online through the PFAS Exchange. Thirty-three clinicians joined the training session as part of the conference, Beamer said.

“Increasing awareness among physicians would be a huge win from this conference locally,” she said.

Beamer noted that in addition to healthcare providers and advocates, state environmental and public health officials and policy experts, many residents from Pima, Santa Cruz and Cochise counties attended the conference. 

“They really wanted exposure to the science,” she said. “They didn't know much about PFAS but wanted to learn more.”