October 13th, 2022

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COALITION SPOTLIGHT

Upcoming webinar: Hospitals and the climate crisis

Join the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care, PEACH Health Ontario and CASCADES as we welcome Dr. Shellyza Moledina Sajwani, for an overview of climate change's relevance to pharmacy. Specifically focusing on tangible objectives that can be completed within a hospital pharmacy setting, using the example of the Ottawa Hospital Pharmacy Environmental Stewardship Committee.

Register here

2021 Green Hospital Scorecard Awards

You can now watch recordings of both our 2021

Green Hospital Scorecard Awards presentations:


Top Performers and Green Hospital of the Year Awards


Energy and Energy Behaviour Awards

Learn more about our Green Hospital Scorecard

Upcoming Opportunities

Call for Proposals – NRCan’s ISO 50001 Financial Assistance Program for Buildings


Natural Resources Canada’s ISO 50001 Financial Assistance Program for Buildings will be accepting project proposals from organisations looking to improve energy efficiency in their buildings. Submit your project proposal by October 21, 2022Email to receive an application guide.

 

Funding is available to help commercial and institutional building owners and operators implement the ISO 50001 energy management system standard.


Eligible project expenditures include salaries and benefits, professional, scientific, and technical fees specific to the energy management system, fees for data collection, benchmarking and analysis services, purchasing metering equipment, as well as other expenditures directly related to the project.

Learn more

Call for Abstracts - CHES 2023 National conference


Speaker abstracts are now being accepted for the 2023 CHES National Conference. This national conference attracts leaders from across Canada and around the world in the field of health care facilities design, engineering, operations and maintenance. The CHES 2023 conference theme is “Rejuvenating Healthcare Infrastructure”.


Deadline for submission: November 18th, 2022


Accepted speakers will be notified by February 2023. Bios and abstracts will be required at this time. Speakers are requested to electronically submit their complete PowerPoint presentations by August 15, 2023. Speakers shall agree to provide CHES with a signed release for video and future use of the presentation.


You may submit your completed form HERE and/or any inquiries by email to [email protected].

Survey - Circular medical economies: Reusable isolation gowns 


To gather primary information for the capstone project as part of the Technical Apparel Design program at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, researchers are conducting a study regarding Reusable Medical Textile used for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)- Isolation gowns.


The goal of this survey is to help researchers to gain an understanding about the user’s (health care workers) experience while wearing isolation gowns in health care settings and to create a reusable medical product that is comfortable and addresses the needs of the health care worker.

Take the survey

Call for collaborators: CASCADES support for sustainable health care innovations


CASCADES is seeking proposals from teams of health professionals, administrators, and/or leaders in the Canadian health care system who wish to collaborate with CASCADES on service delivery or system design innovations that reduce the climate impact of health care or the health care system and may also increase climate resilience in their settings.


Expressions of interest are now open and are due January 31, 2023. Learn more about the types of support and how to apply.

Learn more

Canadian Green Building Awards

Become a sponsor or register a project for the Canadian Green Building Awards.


Eligible projects for 2023 must have been substantially completed between January 1, 2020 and February 28, 2023.

Learn more and register

CLIMATE ACTION

Climate change is a public health emergency 

CBC News


In the aftermath of Fiona and the terrible wake it left on Canada's east coast, there is grit, resilience, and rebuilding. We are also left with yet another stark reminder of a changing climate and the havoc that awaits the planet and our species.


We need to face the undeniable. Fiona cannot be viewed in isolation, but instead as one data point — albeit a dramatic and calamitous one for those afflicted — in an inexorable trend toward an increasingly unstable biosphere.


The scientific evidence is consistent; the research is wide-ranging and generated by a broad base of disciplines. 


And it is clear: we are headed toward climate upheaval.

Read more

The costs of climate change: A series of five reports 

Canadian Climate Institutes


Climate change is already costing Canadian households billions of dollars—and these costs are just the tip of the iceberg.


Our Costs of Climate Change series documents how Canada is already suffering from increasingly devastating wildfires, floods, and extreme weather. 

These damages will continue to worsen as the climate warms, putting people’s long-term prosperity, health, and well-being at risk. 


Through a series of five reports, the Canadian Climate Institute has sought to better understand the costs Canada faces from accelerating climate damages—and what we can do about them.

Learn more

The pharmacist's role in climate change: A call to action

National Library of Medicine



Climate change is listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as an urgent health challenge for the next decade.


Anthropogenic global warming gives rise to extreme weather events and air pollution, in turn negatively affecting peoples’ health. 


Prescribed and non-prescribed pharmaceuticals together represent 25% of the total health care greenhouse gas

(GHG) emissions, the largest of any category. Upstream economic activities, such as energy, pharmaceutical manufacturing or transportation, are responsible for 90% of these emissions.


Pharmaceuticals produce GHGs throughout their life cycle by means of manufacturing, procurement, transportation, packaging, disposal through incineration and the use of drugs themselves.

Continue reading

Global fish stocks can’t rebuild if nothing done to halt climate change and overfishing, new study suggests

UBC News


Global fish stocks will not be able to recover to sustainable levels without strong actions to mitigate climate change, a new study has projected.


Researchers at UBC, the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions and University of Bern projected the impact that different global temperature increases and ranges of fishing activity would have on biomass, or the amount of fish by weight in a given area, from 1950 to 2100.


Their simulations suggest that climate change has reduced fish stocks in 103 of 226 marine regions studied, including Canada, from their historical levels. These stocks will struggle to rebuild their numbers under projected global warming levels in the 21st century.

Learn more

CLEAN ENERGY

Switching to renewable energy could save trillions

BBC News


Switching from fossil fuels to renewable energy could save the world as much as $12tn (£10.2tn) by 2050, an Oxford University study says.


The report said it was wrong and pessimistic to claim that moving quickly towards cleaner energy sources was expensive.


Gas prices have soared on mounting concerns over energy supplies. But the researchers say that going green now makes economic sense because of the falling cost of renewables.

Learn more

Global energy employment rises above pre-COVID levels driven by clean energy 

moderndiplomacy 


The amount of energy jobs worldwide has recovered from disruptions due to Covid-19, increasing above its pre-pandemic level. The growth has been driven by hiring in clean energy sectors.


The oil and gas sector, meanwhile, saw some of the largest declines in employment at the start of the pandemic and has yet to recover.


With the recent rebound, clean energy surpassed the 50% mark for its share of total energy employment, with nearly two-thirds of workers involved in building new projects and manufacturing clean energy technologies.

Read more

Canada is developing a clean electricity standard. Does Hawaii have lessons for us?

CBC News

Canada has just 13 years to achieve a formidable task: practically erase its electrical emissions while growing the grid to displace fossil fuels powering its cars, homes and factories. 


It's a double-bind that calls for unprecedented action. And Canada is developing a regulatory tool to get there — a clean electricity standard, a major step in the government's goal of reaching a net-zero electricity grid by 2035. 


"If this policy is effective, it can send a very clear signal to industry, as well as to investors, so that we actually see an increase in clean energy investments in Canada's grid," said Binnu Jeyakumar, program director of electricity at the Pembina Institute. 

Learn more

Several new videos on the RETScreen Software's Power | Storage | Off-grid Analysis model are now available:

Overview of Power l Storage l Off-grid Projects in RETScreen Expert

Hybrid Power System Feasibility Analysis in RETScreen Expert

Standalone Microgrid Feasibility Analysis in RETScreen Expert

Distributed Generation Feasibility Analysis in RETScreen Expert

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

CIB launches $500 million charging and hydrogen refuelling infrastructure initiative 

EE Online 


The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) has announced the launch of its $500 million zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) Charging and Hydrogen Refuelling Infrastructure Initiative (CHRI). The goals of the initiative are to reduce transportation sector greenhouse gas emissions by accelerating the private sector's rollout of large-scale ZEV chargers and hydrogen refuelling stations.


The availability of public charging and refuelling infrastructure is a recognized barrier to ZEV adoption across Canada. As of August 2022, there were approximately 22,000 public chargers and six hydrogen refuelling stations installed in Canada, which is significantly less than the forecasted needs to support ZEV adoption. 

Learn more

Canadian Coat Guard adopts hybrid-electric vessel, explores low-carbon fuel options

Electric Autonomy


The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) is tackling its fleet emissions in a double-pronged approach that will see both hybrid-electric power and lower-emitting fuels adopted by at least two marine vessels.


Decarbonization of all government fleets is a major priority for the federal government and transitioning away from combustion seafaring vessels — as polluters of both air and water — is an opportunity to double the environmental benefit.


“This new electric hybrid powered vessel and the use of biodiesel in our fleet have the potential to become a watershed moment in future shipbuilding and green fuel use. These initiatives gives us reasons to be proud and to be hopeful,” said Mario Pelletier, Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard.

Read more

Launch of EV Fleets Knowledge Hub 

Electric Autonomy

Electric Autonomy Canada is proud to launch the EV fleets Knowledge Hub, a one-stop destination to empower fleet managers with know-how and connections needed to start their EV transition.


This new education platform is the result of a vast industry collaboration that has resulted in a unique, online destination for knowledge and resources it includes:


  • Over 30 learning modules featuring original, peer-reviewed expert guidance 
  • Case studies and video interviews with fleets who have electrified
  • Provincial fuel cost comparison calculator
  • Supplier directory
  • EV Fleets Pro course completion certificate
  • French language version launching April 2023
EV Fleets - Check it out

EVENTS, TRAINING AND WEBINARS

2030 in Focus: Getting the next decade right on net-zero

Less than a week to go until this fall’s major climate change conference, 2030 in Focus: Getting the Next Decade Right on Net-Zero. Excitement is high! There are already 1,500 people registered and in-person spots are sold out. Don't miss out—you can still reserve your virtual seat


This is a unique opportunity to hear from pre-eminent climate leaders from Canada and around the world as they focus on the policies and actions that will keep Canada firmly on the path to its 2030 emissions reduction targets.


Date: October 18th, 2022

Time: 8:30 am-4:00 pm ET

Reserve your virtual seat

International Congress on Academic Medicine

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.

Register here
Become an exhibitor

How to speed up zero-emission vehicle adoption in your municipality 


Hundreds of Canadian municipalities have declared a climate emergency, and cities across Canada are looking for new and effective ways to reduce the carbon footprint of their communities.


Any effective municipal response needs to address transportation as a leading source of emissions, and any sustainable transportation strategy needs to enable the rapid adoption of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV). But how can municipalities leverage their authority and community connections to accelerate ZEV uptake? And which programs and policies should they prioritize?


In this webinar, Joe Rogers from GMF and Ian Klesmer from The Atmospheric Fund (TAF) will present the results of this first-of-its-kind, pan-Canadian collaboration. 


Date: October 21st, 2022 

Time: 1:00pm- 2:00pm ET

Learn more and register

Green Health Care Forum 2022: Practical pathways to decarbonization for hospitals 


The annual Greening Health Care Forum (in-person event) is coming up on December 1st, bringing together hospital executives, facility directors, industry experts, government and utility companies to drive forward the energy and environmental performance of the hospital sector.

 

Be part of a forum where hospitals gather to review their energy and water performance, share knowledge and experiences with peers and find their next projects to help deliver even greater savings in 2023 on their practical pathways to low carbon.


Date: December 1, 2022

Time: 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM

Venue: The Westin Harbour Castle Hotel, Toronto

Register here

Climate emergency: Taking action on planetary health 


We are pleased to announce that the annual Climate Emergency conference, hosted by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), is back this fall in virtual format. This year, the topics will be focused on taking action on planetary health.


Why is this conference important and why is it relevant to you?


The World Health Organisation has stated that the climate crisis is the biggest health concern of the 21st century. If we do not make major changes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the next 10 years, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts catastrophic effects on the environment and human health. This conference will inspire us all in our health care roles to better understand these issues and advocate for necessary systemic change.


Date: October 29th, 2022

Register here

Recent reports on biodiversity from Canada's commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development 


Sustainability Network welcomes back Canada’s Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD) to discuss his latest three biodiversity-focused reports to be tabled in Parliament on October 4.


Commissioner Jerry V. DeMarco and Principals Milan Duvnjak and David Normand from the Office of the Auditor General of Canada will discuss the issues covered by three recent CESD reports.


The webinar will highlight learnings from these CESD reports and provide an opportunity for questions.


Date: October 14th, 2022 

Time: 2:00pm-3:00pm PDT

Register here


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.


Learn more

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.

Learn more and register to donate

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.
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