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As we look forward to the new year, the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care would like to hear from our readers regarding the content of our newsletter, The Green Digest. Your feedback will guide us in ensuring our team provides the best possible product for your reading pleasure.
If you have additional questions or comments please contact autumn@greenhealthcare.ca
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Introducing Healthcare LCA
A new tool to support the global transition towards sustainable health systems has launched. The
HealthcareLCA database is an open-access, interactive database of health care’s environmental impacts. It
currently houses over 4,000 environmental impact values for more than 1,400 health care products and
activities, including equipment, pharmaceuticals, investigations, procedures, services, and overall health
systems.
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Leadership sprint: Climate resilient, low carbon sustainable health systems
This Leadership Sprint will equip participants with the tools and confidence to challenge assumptions in order to create and devise new strategies with which to transform health care leadership.
The course is intended for individuals in the health system with new or longstanding roles leading sustainability and resilience initiatives. Course participants may include leaders or members of boards who are being called to give more attention to sustainability and resilience in health care.
Monday, March 20 – Thursday, March 23, 2023 1:00-2:30 pm ET
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2023 ENERGY STAR® Canada Awards
The ENERGY STAR® Canada Awards recognize businesses and organisations that have made outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through superior energy achievements in Canada.
Between January 5th and March 6th, 2023 ENERGY STAR® Canada Participants will be invited to apply for one or more awards.
Let Natural Resources Canada recognize your outstanding 2022 achievements in promoting ENERGY STAR® certified products and new homes in Canada!
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New in Canada! Get 50001 ready recognition with the navigator tool
Natural Resources Canada is pleased to announce the launch of the 50001 Ready Canada program (50001 Ready). 50001 Ready recognizes Canadian industrial facilities and buildings that attest to the implementation of an ISO 50001-based energy management system.
The program is a self-paced, no-cost way for organisations to build a culture for continual energy improvement that leads to deeper and sustained savings that does not require any external audits or certification.
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Health Leadership Speciality in sustainable health systems | |
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CASCADES and the Canadian College of Health Leaders (CCHL) are partnering to offer health leaders in Canada a new avenue to leverage, build knowledge, skills and networks across Canada’s health care community to promote and deliver sustainable health systems.
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Release of RETScreen® Version 9.0
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Version 9 of the RETScreen® Clean Energy Management Software platform was released on October 13th, 2022 and is now available for download from the RETScreen website. This update has arrived with a number of salient new features to enhance the RETScreen experience!
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Essential hospitals can lead a holistic approach to climate and health
The Hill
Health care systems are on the front lines of the climate crisis — anchoring disaster response while coping with growing health impacts from heatwaves, wildfires and other weather-related threats. Hardest hit are essential hospitals, which care for the nation’s most climate-vulnerable patients.
Within this challenge lies an opportunity. Given their stature in the most-impacted communities, essential hospitals could lead a holistic approach to climate and health. But in a time of strained resources and unrelenting demand, most lack the capacity to do so. With more federal funding, essential hospitals could improve health, equity and climate resilience in the most vulnerable communities.
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Climate change and global health: What actions are health care leaders taking?
World Economic Forum
While air pollution currently kills 7 million people per year, the World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that climate change will cause approximately 250,000 additional deaths per year between 2030 and 2050 from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea and heat stress.
The health care sector has a particular responsibility in this space, being directly affected by the climate change impacts on patients and at the same time being responsible for over 4% of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) globally.
The World Economic Forum has asked key executives from the health care sector to reflect on the challenges of climate change on their business and what solutions they are already implementing.
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Plastic waste from hospitals: An emergency case
Philippine Daily Inquirer
There’s a ticking time bomb in Philippine hospitals and it’s made of plastic.
Every year, the country produces 2.15 million tons of plastic waste, more than a third of which leaks into the open environment, while another third is thrown into landfills.
Only 345,000 tons of the nonbiodegradable material is kept in homes and less than half of that is recycled, according to Health Care Without Harm (HCWH), an international nonprofit with offices in Manila, Brussels, and Washington, D.C.
That problem became magnified in hospitals at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, as doctors, nurses and other medical staff had to wear all manner of single-use plastics, from head covers and goggles to coveralls and shoe protectors.
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Addressing Climate health in Simcoe Muskoka, Ontario
Canadian Public Health Association
For several years now, the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDHU) has been working to address climate health guided by a theory of change that incorporates three strategies: reorienting public health practice; influencing healthy public policy; and building collective impact.
Climate change was identified as a priority public health issue in the 2012-2016 Strategic Plan, with the perspective that an agency-wide response would enhance its ability to effectively respond to this important and complex issue. As a component of this work, SMDHU developed a multi-phase climate change action plan, with an initial phase resulting in the completion of a comprehensive climate health vulnerability assessment published in 2017.
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An urgent call to integrate the health sector into the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
SSRN
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There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to stop biodiversity loss and secure the resilience of all life on Earth.
In December 2022, Parties to the United Nations (UN) Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will meet in Montreal, Canada, to finalize the language and terms of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (Post-2020 GBF). The Post-2020 GBF aims to address the shortcomings of the previous Strategic Plan on Biodiversity 2011-2020, by introducing a Theory of Change.
In this policy perspective the writers explore the implications of the Theory of Change chosen to underpin the Post-2020 GBF, specifically that broad social transformation is an outcome that requires actors to be specified.
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SHA promotes food security with the "Apple-a-Day" initiative
Saskatchewan Health Authority
Nutrition and Food Service is launching the Apple-A-Day (AAD) initiative – a program aimed at supporting individuals who are experiencing food insecurity. It’s designed as a weekly, free of cost, ‘prescription’ box of fresh fruits and vegetables for patients requiring improved nutrition. The contents of the food boxes will be sourced as close to home as possible, drawing from the local food growers markets. It will be tested and evaluated for one year at three locations: Pasqua Hospital in Regina, Battleford Union Hospital and the La Ronge Community Health Centre.
While their main goal is to help those who are unable to afford or secure fresh, healthy food with a regular source, part of this project is to better understand the local food growers market and look for more opportunities to partner with them to bring sustainably sourced and delicious foods to all persons accessing care in Saskatchewan.
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NHS England publishes standards to ensure better hospital food on the menu
The Caterer
The NHS has implemented eight new National Standards of Hospital Food for patients, staff, and visitors under its latest NHS Standard Contract, published this week.
The NHS is one of the largest providers of food and drink services in the country, serving over 199 million meals per year. Under the new contract all organisations subject to it will be required to deliver against eight standards, which build on work that is already underway across the country.
For patients and staff these standards mean that NHS staff and patients will be able to access nutritious food and drink at any time of day and night, every day of the week. All NHS organisations will have access to dietetic expertise to better support patient recovery and general health.
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Canadian building energy code compliance study
Natural Resources Canada
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Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is conducting a Canada-wide study to collect information about energy code compliance for buildings. These questions seek input from industry professionals, practitioners and building officials with recent experience helping to demonstrate or enforce energy compliance for large buildings in Canada (commonly referred to as “Part-3 buildings”). Your feedback will be used to estimate current rates of compliance with energy codes for large buildings, to understand current obstacles to compliance, and to inform future efforts to improve energy code compliance across Canada.
We encourage industry participants to take less than 15 minutes to answer these important questions before January 2nd 2023.
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The Electric Vehicle Discovery Centre is back!
Plug'n Drive
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After five amazing years at their EVDC in North Toronto, Plug'n Drive is very excited to announce a new location for the Electric Vehicle Discovery Centre in Concord, Ontario.
We encourage you to come by and meet our ambassadors, get your questions answered and take test drives in some of the latest EV models from leading manufacturers. After your visit at our new Electric Vehicle Discovery Centre, we’re confident you’ll understand why it’s time to electrify your ride!
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Health care workers' access to personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic | |
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Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, health care workers have faced particular challenges because of an increased risk of exposure to COVID-19 in health care settings, high workloads, increased stress and issues involving the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE). PPE is equipment worn by health care workers to minimize exposure to hazards that could cause serious workplace illness. Learn the stats from across Canada on health care workers use of and access to PPE.
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EVENTS, TRAINING AND WEBINARS | |
RETScreen World conference | |
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The RETScreen World Conference will help improve the knowledge, skills, and capabilities of the 750,000+ energy, facility and sustainability professionals located around the world who use the RETScreen® Clean Energy Management Software platform. The focus of the conference is to ensure that both new and existing users are able to maximize the benefit and impact of using the software platform in their day-to-day work.
Date: January 25th, 2023
Time: 9:45am EST
Registration is only required for the Live Q&A. You do not need to register to watch the conference talks. Conference sessions will be available to watch on-demand starting January 25, 2023.
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EV Innovation and Technology Conference | |
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This one-day in-person event will bring together the brightest minds working to accelerate and transform electric vehicle manufacturing in Canada.
Why should you attend?
- Understand the fundamental linchpins of the North American EV supply chain.
- Meet Canadian companies working on cutting-edge technology.
- Discover opportunities to collaborate as we develop national capabilities for advanced manufacturing.
Venue: Barrett Centre for Technology Innovation, Toronto
Date: February 8th, 2023
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International Congress for Academic Medicine | |
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Registration is now open for the International Congress on academic (ICAM).
ICAM is the first international gathering dedicated to academic medicine. It will be the place for the academic medicine community to meet, network, and develop new relationships and collaborations with colleagues from around the world.
ICAM will showcase innovation and scholarship in medical education and health research. Medical students, residents and graduate students will have the opportunity to present their work, network and connect with medical education and research mentors as well as prospective employers.
Dates: April 13th - April 18th, 2023
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RETScreen® is a Clean Energy Management Software system for energy efficiency, renewable energy and cogeneration project feasibility analysis as well as ongoing energy performance analysis.
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Have you registered as an organ donor?
Contact your local organ donation agency and speak to your family about your wishes. You have the power to save and transform lives.
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The Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care is Canada’s premier green health care resource network, leading the evolution of green in Canada’s health sector as a national voice and catalyst for environmental change. www.greenhealthcare.ca | |
Some articles referred to in the Digest make reference to services and/or product offerings from specific suppliers. The CCGHC recommends that readers research the service and product offerings available through a wider range of suppliers for comparison purposes and in keeping with public sector purchasing guidelines. These articles should not be interpreted as an endorsement of any product or service. | | | | | |
