Sustainability & Health

It is estimated that heath care spending will rise to almost 20% of our national GDP by 2026 (source).  Imagine if that spending power was leveraged to reduce health care’s environmental footprint while transforming people’s health and the health of their community.  Furthermore, a recent study (Eckelman et al. 2020) found that greenhouse gas emissions from the health care sector rose in the last decade and now accounts for over 8% of total US emissions.  Below we summarize two organizations working to integrate sustainability into health care operations.

Practice Greenhealth

Practice Greenhealth is a membership based organization.  It provides resources and solutions to incorporate sustainability within hospital and health care settings to reduce the environmental impact while benefiting patients, staff, and the organization’s financial security (learn more here).  They categorize the issues for accomplishing their mission into 12 topics such as Energy, Sustainable Procurement, Greening the Operating Room, Food, Chemicals and more (see full list).  For example, Practice Greenhealth works to eliminate or reduce hazardous chemicals and replace them with safer alternatives thus reducing exposure to staff and patients.  HSC Sustainability is currently evaluating the possibility of membership as an academic institution.  If you’re interested in accessing Practice Greenhealth’s resources through our potential membership, please contact us expressing your interest.

Health Care Without Harm

Health Care Without Harm’s goals are to “protect public health from climate change, transform the supply chain, and build leadership for environmental health” (see their mission and goals).  Like Practice Greenhealth they focus on various topics including buildings, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and food to name a few.  They also have several ways to get involved including a physician network (see ways to get involved).  Their YouTube channel features several videos including their “Do No Harm” video which is an animated, three minute video showing how heath care can create a healthier and more sustainable world (see video here).

Take Action

Want to be part of the sustainability in health care movement?  Here are a two suggestions on how to get started:

1. Be Informed – Sign up for Practice GreenHealth’s newsletter and/or Healthcare Without Harm’s newsletter to keep up to do date (also sign up for HSC Sustainability’s newsletter).  Additionally, the World Heath Organization and Health Care Without Harm have a publication, “Healthy Hospitals, Health Planet, Health People: Addressing Climate Change in Health Care Settings” (full download here).  Although it is from 2009, it discusses the issues still relevant today.  Also, see this publication, Climate Change and Health: Is There a Role for the Health Care Sector” (full download here).  
2. Get Involved – If you work in the health care sector, see if your employer will join one of these organizations or join one as an individual.  There’s even an annual conference called CleanMed you can attend.  If you do not work in health care, chances are you participate in the system somehow.  Next visit, ask your doctor if they have any sustainability goals, encourage them to offer recycling, or simply mention the issues to them.  Simply talking about it and letting your practitioners and employers know about your interests can spark movement.  

Climate change is an important global issue that significantly impacts human health in many ways.  As our environment continues to change, it is critical to understand and address health risks associated with these changes to protect vulnerable populations, build community resilience, and prepare for possible future challenges.

Key Health Impacts of Climate Change:

• Respiratory Issues – Increased air pollution from higher levels of ground-level ozone and wildfires can exacerbate asthma and other respiratory conditions (Source: CDC Climate Change & Occupational Safety & Health).
• Infectious Diseases – Temperature and precipitation changes can expand the habitats of vectors like ticks and mosquitoes, and therefore increase the spread of diseases like Lyme disease and malaria (Semenza, J.C., Rocklöv, J. & Ebi, K.L. 2022)
• Temperature-Related Illnesses & Deaths – Increased frequency and severity of heatwaves can lead to heat exhaustion, heatstroke, and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.  Climate change can also cause extreme cold weather occurrences resulting in cardiovascular stress like hypothermia (Source: Temperature-Related Death & Illness, 2022).  In addition, extreme weather events can cause power outages and blackouts to occur which may further expose people to life-threatening temperatures like what occurred here in Texas in February 2021.
• Food & Water Insecurity – Climate Change can have impacts on our food system such as reducing levels of essential nutrients in crops and affecting crop yield and production thus leading to malnutrition and food insecurity (Fischer et al. 2005).
• Displacement – Occurrences associated with climate change such as extreme weather events, sea level rises, and more can displace people or cause them to migrate which can amplify existing inequalities and lead to poor health outcomes (Climate Migration 101, 2023 and Severoni et al. 2024) .
• Mental Health – Displacement, extreme weather events, and health issues related to climate change can be stressful and lead to anxiety, depression, and PTSD (How Does Climate Change Affect Mental Health, American Psychological Association, 2023).

Our food system and the environment are intricately linked in a complex web of interactions that shape both the health of our planet and the well-being of every form of life.  From the way we produce and consume food to the broader impacts on ecosystems, every aspect of our food system has profound consequences for the environment and human health.  Understanding these relationships is essential for fostering a food system that not only nourishes people but also acknowledges our finite resources and works to use them sustainably.

Connections Between Our Food & the Environment:

• Water Use – Agriculture is the largest consumer of freshwater resources globally (~70%), and demand is expected to increase because of population and economic growth (Strains on freshwater resources: The impact of food production on water consumption, 2023).
• Deforestation – Clearing land for food production like palm oil and meat drives deforestation and loss of biodiversity, and about half of all deforestation occurs to grow and raise our food (Deforestation & Your Food, WWF).
• Greenhouse Gas Emissions – Food production accounts for 25% of global greenhouse gas emissions (Environmental Impacts of Food Production, Our Word in Data), and emissions contribute to climate change.  Climate change affects our health in many ways (see above Health Impacts of Climate Change).
• Soil Health – Some farming practices can degrade soil health affecting its fertility and carbon sequestration.  Soil is a “living and life-giving resource”, and there are principles to manage soil for health (USDA, Soil Health).
• Food Waste – According to the USDA, about 30-40% of our food is wasted annually for many reasons such as inefficient supply chains and retail practices, consumer behavior, expiration dates, and more.  This leads to a waste in resources beyond the food itself such as a waste in energy and water.  Furthermore, food waste contributes to increased methane emissions from decomposing organic matter in landfills (USDA Food Loss & Waste 2024).
• Loss of Biodiversity – Due to many factors related to growing/raising our food (such as reduced or destroyed habitat, monoculture practices, and pesticide use), the variety and variability of species can decline across an area or region.  This loss of diversity can harm the health of the ecosystem as well as human health (see article from World Economic Forum 2023 and Loss of Biodiversity, 2019).
• Energy Use – From farming to processing to transportation to consumption to disposal, our food system utilizes significant amounts of energy throughout each step.  Because of the emissions, resource depletion, and pollution, it’s imperative to mitigate the impacts now and as our needs grow (further reading: Challenges Facing the Food System)
• Pollinators – Pollinators such as bees and butterflies have a crucial role in ensuring the reproduction of many crops, and many are declining for reasons like habitat loss, pesticide use, and disease (Importance of Pollinators, USDA).

The built environment (our neighborhoods and the places we live, work, play, etc.) is defined as one of the social determinants of health (SDOH) (see Social Determinants of Health).

Some Ways the Built Environment Can Affect Our Health:

• Access to Fresh, Healthy Food – Neighborhoods without convenient access to grocery stores can lead to poor health outcomes.
• Quality of Housing – Agriculture is the
• Walkability & Transportation – Agriculture is the
• Air & Water Quality – Agriculture is the
• Access to Green Spaces – Agriculture is the
• Air & Water Quality – Agriculture is the
• Public Interaction – Agriculture is the

Building on decades of past work, the United Nations created 17 Sustainable Development Goals for the world to attain “peace and prosperity for people and planet, now and into the future” (Source: History; sdgs.org/goals 2024).  The goals strive for a healthier people and planet thus highlighting how the two are intertwined and connected.  Learn more about each SDGs and how people are working towards them at sdgs.un.org/goals.