Planetary Health
What is planetary health?
Planetary health presents a new way to think of “the health of human civilization and the state of the natural systems on which it depends,” as described in the Rockefeller Lancet report, which include:
Environmental impact areas
- Changing abundance, composition, and distribution of species
- Changing biogeochemical flows
- Changing food systems
- Changing land use and land cover
- Climate change
- Global pollution
- Natural disasters
- Urbanization
- Water scarcity
Public health impact areas
- Civil strife and displacement
- Infectious diseases
- Mental health
- Non-communicable diseases
- Nutrition
Other Resources
The Biggies (in our view)
- Safeguarding human health in the Anthropocene epoch: report of The Rockefeller Foundation–Lancet Commission on planetary health
- The Lancet Countdown report 2018
- Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT–Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems
- The Global Syndemic of Obesity, Undernutrition, and Climate Change: The Lancet Commission report
- The 2018 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: shaping the health of nations for centuries to come
Others of note (in our view)
- Tackling air pollution, climate change, and NCDs: time to pull together
- What is planetary health?
- Planetary health: protecting human health on a rapidly changing planet
Rather watch and listen?
- Prof Howard Frumkin addressing 2017 Inaugeral Planetary Health alliance
- UK Parlimentary Enquiry on Planetary Health 2018
- Greta Thunberg TED Talk (not quite academic – but we applaud her brave wisdom)
“In the Anthropocene era, it is impossible to draw a clear line between human civilisation and natural systems. With this in mind, it is crucial that we do not forget that it is the choices that our societies make that will determine the planet’s future and consequently, our own. Planetary health needs to be at the centre of these choices”
The Bigger Picture of Planetary Health – Lancet Planetary Health 2018