February 23rd, 2023

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You are invited - Seeking participants for our LTC/RH scorecard pilot project

The Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care has been working diligently over the past year to complete the first comprehensive made-in-Canada environmental benchmarking tool for long-term care (LTC) and retirement homes (RH) and we are now garnering participants to pilot this project.

The new scorecard will continue the Coalition’s long-standing focus on helping health care organisations measure their environmental performance in a number of areas including energy and water conservation, waste management, corporate environmental leadership, pollution prevention, food, transportation and climate change.

To learn more and submit data before March 30th, 2023 please email autumn@greenhealthcare.ca

Climate change and health: The role of radiology

Join the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care, PEACH Health Ontario, and CASCADES as we welcome Dr. Maura Brown to speak on the topic of sustainable radiology in health care.

In this one-hour session Dr. Brown will review the concept of planetary health, outline the available choices in radiology departments and discuss the role of health care leaders in climate advocacy.

Date: March 9th, 2023

Time: 9:00 am PST/ 12:00 pm EST

Pharmaceuticals in the Environment: Impacts on non-target options

Join the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care, PEACH Health Ontario, and CASCADES for an interactive webinar with Dr. Gigi Wong.

In this one-hour session Gigi will describe how pharmaceuticals enter the environment; detail the environmental classification for pharmaceuticals and the properties of persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity; as well as provide one example of wildlife that has been negatively impacted by the use of pharmaceuticals.

Date: March 28th, 2023

Time: 5:30pm PST/ 8:30pm EST

Job opportunity: Bilingual communications manager

The Nourish Communications Manager will be part of a small and dynamic virtual team dedicated to leveraging food in health care to impact the upstream ecological and social determinants of health.

The successful candidate will work closely with the Nourish team to develop and implement the bilingual strategic communications and media strategy, from design to evaluation. This will include managing website, social media, newsletter, and media relations and supporting development and management across all program areas.

Application deadline: March 1st, 2023

CHES 2023 National Conference: Exhibitor and Sponsor opportunities

The CHES 2023 Conference is your direct access to decision-makers in the Hospital & health care construction industry.

You will have the opportunity to introduce your company's products and services to delegates from health care facilities, architects, engineers & contractors from across Canada and Internationally.

This is a perfect opportunity to ensure that they have the information they need about your product and service to make an informed decision.

There are several sponsorship opportunities available to help raise awareness of your company and your products and services.

Earth Day: New workshop topic

Earth Day Canada is offering new introductory workshops on environmental action through three different themes: Adopting an eco-friendly lifestyle, eating sustainably and reducing food waste.

Thanks to these themes you’ll discover many valuable tips and tricks and gain access to additional resources so that you can become more environmentally friendly. Each workshop includes quizzes and brainstorming sessions to better understand the different ways you can take action at both the individual and collective levels.

2023 Energy Star Canada Awards

ENERGY STAR Canada award winners are celebrated for their superior achievements in promoting energy efficiency and will be granted use of the prestigious ENERGY STAR Awards’ winner promotional symbols.

From ministerial recognition to special marketing materials, there are many reasons to apply.

The deadline to apply for the 2023 ENERGY STAR Canada Awards is fast approaching! Applications are due no later than March 6, 2023.

Release of RETScreen^® Version 9.0

CLIMATE ACTION

Suppliers hoping to win NHS contracts must produce carbon reduction plans

Supply Management

National Health Service (NHS) suppliers must commit to net zero by 2050 and publish details surrounding key areas of their scope three supply chain emissions under new requirements. 

Suppliers with contracts worth £5m and above a year will be required to publish carbon reduction plans (CRPs) for their scope one and two emissions, and a “defined subset” of scope three emissions, NHS England said.



The rules will apply to all new contracts from April 2023. Suppliers whose CRPs do not meet the minimum expectations will not get beyond the pre-qualification stage.

Strategies for decarbonizing health care

Healthcare Facilities Today

Hospitals and other health care facilities are striving to integrate sustainable practices into their buildings' operational planning and objectives to protect and promote health and the bottom line, and decarbonization has become a focus.



Decarbonization means the reduction of carbon. More precisely, it means the conversion to an economic system that sustainably reduces and compensates carbon dioxide emissions. 

Leading health care organisations are developing strategic cost-reduction programs with good reason — to improve the environment of care for patients, staff, team members and the communities they serve. Using less carbon is right in line with this thinking.  

FOOD SYSTEMS

Food loss and waste successes from the U.S and Canada

USDA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ North America Liaison Office co-hosted a virtual roundtable session to showcase “Food Loss and Waste Successes from the U.S. and Canada.”

Speakers shared their experiences of increasing sustainable food management in Baltimore, Denver, Vancouver, British Columbia, and Guelph, Ontario. The webinar also includes remarks from Dr. Jean Buzby, USDA’s Food Loss and Waste Liaison, and Jocelyn Brown Hall, the Director of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Liaison Office for North America based in Washington, DC.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

EVs lead to fall in asthma hospital admissions, study shows

Energy Live News

Scientists have said that electric vehicles (EVs) might lead to a reduced number of asthma hospitalisations.

Researchers from the University of Southern California have found that for every 2% increase in zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs) adoption in a specific zip code in California, asthma-related emergency visits drop by 3%.

The study has also revealed that more electric vehicles lead to a small reduction in nitrogen dioxide levels.

BlueWave-ai to grow EV software line with $9.5M fundraise

SustainableBIZ

BluWave-ai is advancing its line of software products that aim to solve electrical grid congestion caused by the growth of electric vehicle (EV) fleets, aided by a $9.5 million fundraise to grow the company.

The Ottawa-based company was founded in 2017 and offers AI-powered cloud software that predicts, optimizes and controls EV fleets and renewable energy on electric grids. With their software solutions, BlueWave-ai is also addressing the rise in EV adoption that is placing additional strain on electric grids.

Charging ahead: Ensuring equality and reliability in Canada's electric vehicle network

CSA Group

This report provides an overview of Canada’s EV charging infrastructure, followed by a summary of the key issues surrounding charging infrastructure deployment, such as location, physical design, reliability, and payment options.

Finally, policy considerations are offered for the federal government to keep in mind as it develops a robust EV charging network:

Deploy EV charging infrastructure through an equity lens, Incorporate accessible design practices at the outset,Ensure reliability for drivers, and Promote inclusive payment options.

The transition to net-zero requires rapidly up-skilling Canada's workforce

Electric Autonomy

With a growing consensus on the needs and benefits of transitioning to a net-zero economy, including switching from fuel-burning to clean, zero-emission vehicles, a massive shift is taking place in the thinking of policymakers and across the industry. 

A significant element of this shift includes Canada’s future net-zero job market.

Policymakers and industry face the not-small task of leveraging the tremendous climate and health benefits of this transition alongside the equally enormous co-benefit of job creation.

FACILITIES

Health care facilities embrace modular construction

Healthcare Facilities Today

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for hospital space was increasing. Three years later, that demand has reached an all-time high.  

To address space demands, health care facilities managers are paying more attention to modular construction over the last few years.

The LEGO-block style assembly allows for quicker construction projects with less waste. But the preconstruction process that health care facilities have grown to be familiar with is different. Managers must make certain decisions sooner in order to better work with designers and trade partners.  

Using performance metrics to deliver highly energy efficient health care facilities

Greening Health Care

Energy performance results from new hospitals opened in Ontario since 2007 have been mixed, with some exceptional performers setting new standards for energy efficiency.

This Guide presents high performance energy metrics derived from these top-ranked hospitals. The Guide has been developed for use by hospitals and their design teams to inform evidence-based modelling, energy targets and building system designs, and by government policy makers and program designers to help establish performance outcomes and guidance for achieving consistently high energy performance in hospital facilities.

SaveOnEnergy's 2021 Energy Managers of the Year Awards

SaveOn Energy

IESO’s Save on Energy team recognized its 2021 Energy Manager of the Year award recipients, all of whom represent “Ontario’s most innovative professional energy managers who deliver lasting value to organisations across the province”. Congratulations to the following:

• Chris Shilton, CityHousing Hamilton
• Daniela Paraschiv, City of Mississauga
• Paul Mellecke, General Dynamics Land Systems
• Ehson Ameer, Magna Polycon
• Behzad Hosseinpour, Maple Leaf Foods
• Shailesh Abhang and Emily Huang, Unity Health
• Jerome James

The Energy Manager of the Year Awards celebrate Ontario’s most innovative professional energy managers who deliver lasting value to organisations across the province. Save on Energy has held these industry-leading awards since 2017 to recognize the skill and dedication of these individuals and their organisations' commitment to energy-efficiency best practices.

Submissions for the 2022 Energy Manager of the Year awards are now open. Deadline for submission is March 10th, 2023.

EVENTS, TRAINING AND WEBINARS

2023 CHES Ontario Chapter Conference

You are invited to the 2023 CHES Ontario chapter education conference and exhibition which will be happening on June 4th - 6th at Caesars Windsor Convention Centre.

This year, the theme is “Engineering for Sustainability and Resilience in Healthcare Facilities” where they have assembled a program that will assist members’ everyday challenges with new and exciting information and products.

Click HERE for delegate and registration information and HERE for the educational program information.

If paying by Credit Card, the convenient ONLINE REGISTRATION portal is now available.

2023 CHES Webinar Series

Online registration is open for the 2023 Webinar Series! Dates and topics are listed below.



• March 22nd, 2023 - Decarbonization for health care buildings - The giant step forward
• April 19th, 2023 - Barriers and enablers for the new IPAC technologies - What is the evidence?
• May 17, 2023 - Leading EDI in organisations for non-EDI-experts
• June 21, 2023 - Practicalities of [HVAC] electrification in health care facilities
• October 18, 2023 - What's new within the 2022 Medical Gas Standard & the "Qualified Service Technician"
• November 22, 2023 - Design of resilient bulk oxygen supply systems for health care facilities

Food as medicine: Improving patient and planetary health

"By considering food as a therapeutic intervention, we can change the way we make decisions about how we source food, what type of food we serve, and how we support patients’ health through food, while helping to be better stewards for our planet”, says Annie Lalande.

The fourth-year UBC general surgery resident and third-year PhD student at UBC’s Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability is passionate about the role food plays in promoting health and wellness, and the crucial role food plays in building community, strengthening culture, maintaining our planet’s health and nurturing joy.

Register to hear Annie share about her work connecting food to patient and planetary health.

Date: March 1st, 2023

Time: 12pm - 1pm EST

Canadian Circular Economy Summit

Advance the role of circular solutions in delivering environmental, social, and economic outcomes at the first Canadian Circular Economy Summit, co-hosted by Circular Economy Leadership Canada (CELC) and Circular Innovation Council. Expand the impact of this sector as we delve into the importance of climate action in a circular economy.

Join leaders from industry, government, NGOs, and academia who are working toward transformative change by activating innovative circular solutions across the country. Come together in person to share learnings and best practices, while collaborating on the solutions, innovations, and cross-sectoral cooperation necessary for accelerating the transition to a circular economy in Canada.

Dates: June 19-20

Location: Toronto Region Board of Trade - Toronto, ON

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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Contact your local organ donation agency and speak to your family about your wishes. You have the power to save and transform lives.

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