Nursing Toolkit for Planetary Health
This toolkit is designed to equip nurses with the information and resources to become influential changemakers for a more sustainable, resilient and low-carbon health care system.
“Planetary health” is a recent term that arises from Indigenous knowledges and understandings of human interconnectedness to nature, other species and the Earth. It describes the idea that to support and sustain human health and well-being, we need to promote and maintain the health and well-being of the Earth, including its living and non-living systems.
This concept is central to addressing the key ecological crises of our times, including climate change. In Canada, the health care sector contributed approximately 4.6% of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions, which is the third highest per-capita greenhouse gas emissions from health care in the world.
How nurses can contribute to climate action
This toolkit focuses on how nurses can contribute to climate action and planetary health at the:
Individual level by practicing environmentally friendly habits
Unit level by addressing day-to-day nursing practice
Institutional level by raising awareness and advocating for policy changes
Nurses should be aware of the contributions of the health care sector to the climate crisis through resource consumption, carbon emissions, waste, and air and water contamination. This underscores the urgent need to decrease the sector’s carbon footprint.
Nurses armed with knowledge, skills and networks can support planetary health and lead efforts to achieve sustainability and climate action in the provision of health care. This toolkit will guide frontline nurses to take action and influence health care decision-makers to promote sustainability on all levels of health care delivery.
This toolkit can be used as a guide to prepare and organize meetings with senior leadership within your workplace. Suggestions and compelling arguments for the benefits of implementing ecologically friendly changes are included. The objective is to promote sustainable economic, policy and social transitions so that future generations can inherit a healthier and safer planet.
As nurses, we know that the health of our patients, clients and families is intrinsically linked to the health and well-being of our planet. Let us act together to educate, agitate and advocate for climate-resilient and low-carbon sustainable health care facilities from coast to coast to coast.
About CANE
The Canadian Association of Nurses for the Environment (CANE-ACIIE) is a member of the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) Network of Nursing Specialties and represents Canadian nurses and nursing students dedicated to the improvement of planetary health. CANE-ACIIE members are engaged in a wide variety of nursing practices, from direct care in both acute and community/public health, to education, research and/or administration. CANE-ACIIE has been increasingly recognized for its expertise in environmental and climate health in the years since its original foundation in 2008-2009.
About CFNU
The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions is Canada’s largest organization representing Canada’s frontline nurses in every sector of health care – from home care, long-term care, community and acute care, including nursing students – and advocating on key health priorities and federal engagement in the future of public health care.