HEAL attends Healthy Planet Better World Forum by new member MedAct

On 9 and 10 December HEAL attended Healthy Planet Better World, a forum organised by new HEAL member MedAct in London, UK.



The forum built on the idea that human health is dependent on a healthy environment but that our current way of living damages natural resources in ways that undermine our ability to sustain healthy and equitable societies.

With more than 40 leading speakers from the fields of health, policy, campaigning and research the two-day forum covered topics such as energy and food systems, economics, migration, conflict and health services.

Medact is a charity for health professionals and others working to improve health worldwide. It educates, analyses and campaigns for global health on issues related to conflict, poverty and the environment while mobilising the health community to support policy change and shift public attitudes.

On Friday, the forum focused on relationship between environment and health, examining a wide range of interconnected issues related to the breaching of planetary boundaries: from economic, energy and food systems to violent conflict and migration, and how health services themselves will be affected.

On Saturday, delegates were given the chance to explore how they can address the impacts of environmental change on health, supported by four parallel workshops to enable skill sharing and give delegates an opportunity to learn about the issues in which the health community is already active.

Speakers included Richard Horton (The Lancet), Fiona Godlee (British Medical Journal), Kate Raworth (Doughnut Economics), Age of Stupid producer Lizzie Gillet, Nick Watts (Lancet Commission on Climate Change and Health) and many more.

You can read all about the forum on MedAct´s website and check the program here.

Originally posted on 19 December 2016