The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking experts to serve as members of the Task Group on Radiofrequency Fields and Health Risks that will contribute to the development of a WHO monograph on Radiofrequency fields.
This Call for experts provides information about the Task group in question, the expert profiles being sought, and the application and selection processes.
Background
Exposure to radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields (EMF) (frequencies of 100 kHz to 300 GHz) has been steadily increasing since the 1950s, with primarily radio and television signals and more recently including wireless telecommunications. The characteristics of RF exposure have been changing over time and are expected to change further with the deployment of new technologies around the world. Wireless technologies are found in all countries of the world, and many developing countries are using wireless networks as the main communications means over landline networks. Due to the ubiquitous and increasing exposure to RF fields, it is important to establish whether the fields have adverse health effects on humans, and to perform a health risk assessment, as far as possible.
Objectives and desired impact of the WHO review
In order to respond to this need, WHO has an ongoing project to assess potential health effects of exposure to radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields in the general and working population. The analysis and synthesis of available evidence will be published as a monograph in the WHO Environmental Health Criteria (EHC) series. It will be informed by a scoping report and a set of commissioned systematic reviews related to several health outcomes (cancer, adverse reproductive outcomes, cognitive impairment and symptoms) and biological outcomes (heating and oxidative stress).
Role of the Task Group
In line with WHO processes for scientific evaluation, the Task Group will support WHO in:
- reviewing the draft of the scoping report and drawing conclusions on the effects of RF exposure on health;
- formulating an overall health risk assessment for each outcome in the EHC monograph based on the conclusions of the scoping report and the systematic reviews;
- compiling national good practice interventions; and,
- identifying research gaps.
The Task Group will assist the Secretariat through online and/or physical meetings and provide written input on scientific texts and conclusions. The Task Group will be expected to meet at least twice in plenary, virtually or in person, usually for 2-3 days each time. Interim teleconferences may be required of the members. The project is estimated to end by December 2022. The working language of the group will be English.
Eligibility criteria for potential Task Group members
The Task Group will be multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience.
Members of the Task Group must have excellent technical knowledge and documented experience in at least one of the following areas:
- Epidemiology of RF exposure and/or relevant health outcomes;
- Experimental studies (human, animal, in-vitro) related to RF exposure and/or relevant health outcomes;
- RF exposure assessment and RF dosimetry;
- Methodology of health risk assessment; and
- Policy-making in public health and radiation protection
Task group members should have no significant conflict of interest that would impair their neutrality, independence or objectivity in the review process. To this end, applicants are required to complete the WHO Declaration of Interest for WHO Experts and the shortlisting by WHO of any individual for selection as a member of the Task Group is dependent on WHO determining that there is no conflict of interest or that those conflicts that were identified can be appropriately managed (i.e., in addition to WHO’s evaluation of such individual’s experience, expertise and motivation and other criteria).
To register your interest in being considered for the Task Group on Radiofrequency Fields and Health Risks, please submit the following documents by 15 December 2021 [24:00h (midnight) Geneva time] by email to emfproject@who.int with the subject line “Task Group on RF”.
- A cover letter, indicating your motivation to apply and how you satisfy the selection criteria
- Your curriculum vitae (including education background, relevant work experience, and relevant peer-reviewed publications), using this template
- A completed Declaration of Interests (DOI) form for WHO Experts, which can be downloaded here
- A completed Confidentiality Undertaking form, which can be downloaded here.
After submission, your expression of interest will be reviewed by WHO. Due to an expected high volume of interest, only shortlisted individuals will be informed.
Important information about the selection processes
Each curriculum vitae will be reviewed to assess whether the applicant meets the qualifications and has relevant expertise in the subject matter areas listed above. Declaration of Interest forms will be reviewed. Any potential or perceived conflicts of interest disclosed in the Declaration of Interests form will be considered in the selection process. Representatives of commercial organizations may not serve as experts.
The selection of members of the Task Group will be made by WHO in its sole discretion, taking into account the following (non-exclusive) criteria: relevant technical expertise, communication skills, and ability to work constructively with people from different cultural backgrounds and orientations. The selection of Task Group members will also take account of the need for diverse perspectives from different regions, and for gender diversity.
WHO will publish the names and a short biography of the selected individuals on the WHO internet ahead of the first meeting of the Task Group.
All Task Group members will serve in their individual expert capacity and shall not represent any governments, any commercial industries or entities, any research, academic or civil society organizations, or any other bodies, entities, institutions or organizations. They are expected to fully comply with the Code of Conduct for WHO Experts (https://www.who.int/about/ethics/declarations-of-interest). It is expected that Task Group meetings will take place electronically. If required, travel and accommodation expenses of Task Group members to participate in Task Group meetings will be covered by WHO in accordance with its applicable policies, rules and procedures. No honoraria will be provided to any Task Group members for their services or otherwise.
WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any expression of interest , to annul the open call process and reject all expressions of interest at any time without incurring any liability to the affected applicant or applicants and without any obligation to inform the affected applicant or applicants of the grounds for WHO's action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the Task Group, disband an existing Task Group or modify the work of the Task Group.
WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal, or discuss with any applicant, how an expression of interest was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the evaluation/selection process or to state the reasons for not choosing a member.