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WE ARE HIRING - Project Manager – Single Use Plastic Reduction | |
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The Coalition is seeking a dedicated individual to fill a new position, Project Manager - Single Use Plastic Reduction. The selected candidate will collaborate with the Coalition team members to manage the delivery of a thirty month project aiming to reduce single use plastic (SUP) within Canadian health care facilities as well as provide and advise on reduction, reuse, recycling, and storage options based on needs.
If you're committed to advancing sustainable and climate-resilient health care, we want to hear from you! Alternatively, if you know someone who might be interested in this position please forward them this email.
The application deadline is October 23rd, 2024.
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Welcome to our Advisors' Corner, where we explore what inspires our advisors to champion sustainability in health care. They share their insights on the most impactful changes the sector can make, as well as the barriers and opportunities on the path to a greener future.
In honour of National Occupational Therapy Month, we are happy to feature Giovanna Boniface. Giovanna is an occupational therapist and a co-founder of Occupational Therapy Climate Action Network (OT-CAN).
Follow the link below to learn how Giovanna advocates for integrating sustainability into health care through systemic changes, addressing barriers like regulatory frameworks, financial constraints, and resistance to change, while highlighting facilitators such as individual commitment, Indigenous wisdom, and emerging technologies.
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Nursing on the frontlines of the climate crisis: Education for action
Date: Oct. 1 - Dec. 3, 2024 (Tuesdays)
Time: 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET
This program highlights the urgent connection between climate change and health, emphasizing the increasing threats from extreme weather, disease outbreaks, and disrupted health care services. It aims to equip nursing and health care professionals with the knowledge to mitigate climate impacts and promote sustainable practices. Through education, participants will gain the tools to address climate-health challenges and create meaningful public health solutions.
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Nominations open for ECO IMPACT 2025
ECO IMPACT
ECO IMPACT 2025 is an opportunity to celebrate leaders driving sustainability and environmental change. This annual event honours individuals, organizations, and communities making a significant impact, culminating in an Awards Gala that brings together a community committed to environmental progress.
Attendees are invited to nominate trailblazers, share their own achievements, and join a conference focused on connecting, educating, and inspiring future environmental action. The deadline for nominations is October 31st.
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National Awards Program
Canadian College of Health Leaders
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Recognize and promote your outstanding leaders and programs! The Canadian College of Health Leaders is now inviting nominations for the 2025 National Awards Program. The awards recognize the importance of leadership, commitment and performance.
This is a great opportunity to recognize and promote the outstanding leaders and programs in your organisation. Award recipients will be recognized during the College’s 2025 Honouring Health Leadership event. The date and format of this celebration will be announced later this year.
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Empowering the health care workforce for a climate-resilient future
Deloitte.
The report, Empowering the Health Care Workforce for a Climate-Resilient Future, emphasizes the need to equip health care workers with the tools and training necessary to tackle climate-related health challenges.
It highlights how climate change exacerbates health inequities and disrupts care, leading to significant human and economic costs. The report calls for cross-sector collaboration to protect both health care workers and communities from these escalating impacts.
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Reducing the environmental impact of the radiology department
CASCADES
This project aims to reduce the environmental impact of medical imaging. Radiology, or medical imaging, has a significant environmental impact, including through energy consumption, and the production of medical waste like contrast media. The project aims to address these impacts by increasing awareness among health professionals and implementation of sustainable practices.
A poster showcasing the project's work is now available on the CASCADES website.
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A just world on a safe planet: a Lancet Planetary Health–Earth Commission report
The Lancet
The health of the planet and its people are at risk. The deterioration of the global commons—i.e., the natural systems that support life on earth—is exacerbating energy, food, and water insecurity, and increasing the risk of disease, disaster, displacement, and conflict. This Commission works to quantify safe and just earth-system boundaries (ESBs) and assess minimum access to natural resources required for human dignity and to enable escape from poverty. Collectively, these describe a safe and just corridor that is essential to ensuring sustainable and resilient human and planetary health and thriving in the Anthropocene.
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Wet’suwet'en fight to protect dwindling ancient forests in British Columbia
Corporate Knights
Like most First Nations in Canada, the Wet’suwet’en never signed treaties with Canada or the province. Nevertheless, the latter took the land and leased forested areas to logging companies.
The Wet’suwet’en Nation is fighting to protect Caas Tl’aat Kwah, a vital 1,600-hectare watershed, from logging that threatens both the land and their cultural heritage. Despite promises from the province to defer logging, the area remains under threat, as the rise in forest fires linked to industrial logging casts doubt on the province's management of old-growth forests and their role in wildfire prevention.
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Dr. Trevor Hancock | The Wellbeing Society: A response to declining planetary health and increasing inequality
CACOR
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On September 25th, 2024, Dr. Trevor Hancock, co-founder of the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care, delivered a presentation on "well-being societies," a concept promoted by the World Health Organization.
These well-being societies offer an alternative to our current economic system, which is eroding both natural and social capital, contributing to environmental degradation, and exacerbating inequality. Dr. Hancock explored what such societies might look like—societies dedicated to achieving equitable health for present and future generations without exceeding ecological limits.
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Climate change fuels August heat waves across Canada – Results
Government of Canada
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Analysis from Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Rapid Extreme Weather Event Attribution has shown that, in all cases, human-caused climate change made heat waves in August 2024 more likely to have occurred. In some instances, it was at least 10 times more likely.
This system uses climate models to compare today’s climate with a pre-industrial one to explain how much human-caused climate change affected the likelihood of each heat wave.
In three cases, human-caused climate change made heat waves far more likely to occur.
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Version 9.1 of the RETScreen® Clean Energy Management Software platform 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!
One of the latest features is an automated Net Zero Planning Tool which further enables portfolio-wide decarbonization planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting – all available within one single multilingual platform. Learn more about the new tool HERE.
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An Urgent call to bring an affordable climate-friendly inhaler to the US
Health Care Without Harm
More than 27 million people in the United States suffer from asthma, and climate change is increasing triggers that worsen health outcomes. Why then is an effective climate-friendly inhaler out of reach?
Dry powder inhalers (DPIs) offer a much lower environmental footprint compared to metered-dose inhalers (MDIs), but the Symbicort Turbuhaler, a widely used DPI, is not yet available in the U.S., despite its proven efficacy. AstraZeneca’s delay in bringing this low-emission device to the U.S. is seen as a missed opportunity to reduce health care sector emissions.
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Environmentally sustainable prescribing: recommendations for EU pharmaceutical legislation
The Lancet
The pharmaceutical supply chain plays a crucial role in health care but also presents significant environmental challenges, such as resource use, waste generation, and pollution. These impacts threaten planetary health and the well-being of all organisms, including humans.
The Erasmus+ project Planetary Health Education in Prescribing (PlanED Prescribing) seeks to equip health care prescribers with the tools to promote sustainable prescribing practices while ensuring high-quality patient care.
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Toronto hospital to open supportive housing for homeless people
Government of Canada
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Toronto has launched Canada's first Social Medicine Supportive Housing Initiative at Dunn House in the Parkdale neighborhood. The project, a collaboration between the University Health Network (UHN), the City of Toronto, and Fred Victor, focuses on addressing the intersection of homelessness and health care.
It provides 51 affordable housing units to vulnerable individuals, including those who frequently use emergency hospital services. The initiative integrates on-site health and social services to improve residents' well-being and reduce hospital visits.
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Climate Emergency: Tipping Points for Planetary Health | |
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Date: October 26th, 2024
Time: 8:00am-4:15pm ET
Location: Virtual
The climate crisis is at our doorstep. As health professionals, we can help build a healthy planetary future together. Hear from experts in their fields who have initiated projects at a local level. Be inspired at this annual conference presented by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, with lots of opportunities for participants to engage with the speakers and with each other. This conference is open to all health professionals, but everybody is welcome to attend. Learn how you can support the planetary health.
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Greening Healthcare Annual Forum
Date: November 4th, 2024
Time: 8:00am-6:00pm ET
Location: Delta Hotels by Marriott Toronto
Climate change is accelerating, with hospitals on the front line of climate action. The 2030 emissions reduction targets are getting closer, and every hospital has its contribution to make to lowering emissions.
Join the conversation with health care leaders on November 4th to learn the latest trends, the urgency to act, and the practical steps you can take now to reduce your carbon footprint while planning for the energy transition.
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Colloque SSE 2024
Date: November 13th, 2024
Time: 8:00am-5:00pm ET
Location: CHUM | AUDITORIUM Pierre-Péladeau
This eco-responsible event is organized by Synergie Santé Environnement in collaboration with the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM). In-person seating is limited. The event will also be broadcast, in part, on Zoom.
Some of the themes that will be covered include: adaptation and mitigation, tools and concrete actions, responsible sourcing and innovations, biodiversity and greening, carbon neutrality and sustainable development, waste reduction and eco-design and more!
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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. Learn more and register to donate HERE.
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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. | | | | |
