Tag - Climate Change

This session explores the development and implementation of a three-part, interactive, case-based learning activity designed to integrate the Political Determinants of Health (PdoH), Planetary Health (PH), and Climate Justice (CJ) through the lens of the exposome model and local context. Developed at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, this initiative served as a scaffold for future coursework and deeper integration of planetary health and climate justice across the curriculum.

Sustainability efforts are a long game. As we teach students about the many environmental challenges we face, we must pair this with capacity-building that will allow sustained action over the long term. Utilizing sensory cues, story-telling, and shared experience, we can support students to develop not only environmental health knowledge, but also community, resilience, and even joy. Megan Czerwinski will present findings from her research on sustainability competence in nursing education, along with insights from work developing an open-access learning platform for sustainability (learngala.com) and the campus culture recommendations for the University of Michigan Commission for Carbon Neutrality.

PFAS are commonly known as ‘forever chemicals’ due to their extreme persistence in the environment and human body. PFAS cross the placental barrier, accumulate in the growing fetus, are excreted in breast milk, and have been linked with a wide range of health effects including high cholesterol, several cancers, infertility, and low birth weight. This webinar discusses the scope of PFAS exposure in Michigan as well as resources for the clinician, including ANHE’s PFAS Toolkit, as well as advocacy opportunities.

This presentation discusses the information provided in ITRC Coordinator Bob Doppelt’s new book Preventing and Healing Climate Traumas: A Guide to Building Resilience and Hope in Communities (Routledge Publishing). It describes the urgent need, methods, and multiple benefits of using a public health approach in communities to build population mental wellness and resilience for the climate emergency. During the presentation, Doppelt also describes how the “Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act of 2023” that has been introduced in Congress would fund and support these community initiatives. 

Climate change is impacting the health of our communities. From increasing temperature, to more extreme weather events, to rişing sea levels, health impacts are being felt globally. Nurses, as the most trusted professionals, are in a unique position to advocate for climate health.

This education and professional practice change webinar is designed to empower nurse practitioners and nurses to integrate environmental health into clinical care by incorporating education, early screening, and prevention strategies that reduce the adverse impacts of environmental exposures on chronic kidney disease (CKD). In this session, participants will explore the significance of environmental exposures in CKD and gain actionable strategies and resources to enhance practice, advance prevention, and improve community health outcomes.

This webinar explores how our food systems shape both human and planetary health—and the role nurses can play in leading change. Featuring speaker Christina Vollbrecht MA, MS, RDN, Community Culinary Dietitian at Boston Medical Center, this webinar examines the connections between nutrition, environmental sustainability, and public health through topics such as the One Health approach, the parallels between soil and gut microbiomes, and the environmental impact of food production. Our speaker highlights practical, culturally sensitive strategies for promoting environmentally responsible nutrition, advocating for sustainable food sourcing, and strengthening local food system resilience. 

Plastic pollution harms the climate, wildlife, ecosystems, and human health.  It is estimated that of the 14 000 tons of waste generated daily in US health care facilities, about 20% to 25% is plastic. Yet, the majority of plastics, including those used in health care, are not recycled and have created a plastics crisis for our environment. This webinar will provide an overview of the health harms from plastics and how plastic is a hazard at every stage of its life cycle - beginning with extraction of the coal, oil and gas from which nearly all plastics are made, production and use, and to the disposal of plastic waste. Speakers will also discuss how medically unnecessary plastics in the healthcare sector are contributing to the plastics crisis.

In this seminar, we introduce a new program that addresses climate, health and equity, Green Cars for Kids. This Florida-based nonprofit works to create a world where every child and pregnant person reaches their full health potential unhampered by transportation barriers. Our program coordinates transportation for low-income expectant mothers and children to healthcare visits using electric vehicles. The goals of the program are to improve the health of pregnant women and children by breaking down transportation barriers. By using electric vehicles, we contribute to reducing air pollution and carbon emissions that impact the health of frontline communities most.