Joseph “Austin” Addison is an Environmental Health Specialist V with the Georgia Department of Public Health working in Fayette County, GA. His duties primarily involve the inspection of food service and body art establishments. Beyond his regulatory duties, he has taken an interest in these programs and has been a speaker at numerous conferences, sharing insights and best practices for body art and food safety. In addition to his role as a regulator, Austin serves as an adjunct professor at Columbus State University, where he educates health science students in environmental health and consumer health.
Austin has a strong history of involvement in professional organizations. He previously chaired the Environmental Health section of the Georgia Public Health Association where he organized section meetings and speakers, advocated for environmental health issues, and promoted association membership. Currently, Austin serves as co-chair of the Body Art Committee at the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA), contributes to the newsletter, and instructs the Body Art Facility Inspector Training program.
Austin holds a Doctor of Health Sciences from A.T. Still University and is a NEHA credential holder, possessing both the Registered Environmental Health Specialist (REHS) and Certified Professional – Food Safety (CP-FS) certifications. Outside of environmental health, he also holds certifications as a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) and Certified in Public Health (CPH).