Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine is working to prioritize planetary health as an area of education, research and practice.
Recent Planetary Health Event
2025 Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health
On Wednesday April 2, 2025 the Office of Community Engagement hosted the 2nd Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health. Dr. Sonja Wicklum the Director of Planetary Health at Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary, gave a talk entitled: “Planetary Health Education, from Burden to Privilege: Addressing the Greatest Health Threat of our Time”.
Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health
April 2, 2025 @ 4:30 - 6:00 PM
Tupper Theatre C
Featuring: Dr. Sonja Wicklum, Director, Planetary Health, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary.
Please join us for this event, all are welcome!
About the Event:
Talk Title:
Planetary Health Education, from Burden to Privilege: Addressing the Greatest Health Threat of our Time
Learning Objectives:
Situate Canada within the climate crisis
Conceive how to advance planetary health work through deep integration, not positioned as ‘curriculum creep’
Discuss how the University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine has begun to integrate Planetary Health into curriculum and practice
About Dr. Sonja Wicklum:
Dr. Wicklum is a specialist in family medicine and is a clinical associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the Cumming School of Medicine and member of the O’Brien Institute for Public Health. Wicklum has a wealth of research experience in planetary health, obesity management, family medicine, Indigenous women’s health care and rural medicine. Wicklum is passionate about helping others adopt a planetary health lens in their health-care practice.
About the Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health:
The purpose of the Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health is to encourage a greater understanding of global health in many of its contexts. Global health prioritizes improving health and achieving health equity for all people worldwide and emphasizes transnational health issues, determinants and solutions.
Virtual Event Information:
Join this event virtually through Microsoft Teams. Click here or enter the following meeting information in Microsoft Teams.
Meeting ID: 238 269 172 491
Passcode: Vc6sh7aS
Planetary Health is a solutions-oriented, transdisciplinary field and social movement focused on analyzing and addressing the impacts of human disruptions to Earth’s natural systems on human health and all life on Earth (Planetary Health Alliance).
Climate change is the greatest global health threat facing the world in the 21st century, but it is also the greatest opportunity to redefine the social and environmental determinants of health (Lancet Countdown).
In 2023, Dalhousie signed the Academic Health Institutions’ Declaration on Planetary Health, which declares the health of the planet a Code Red emergency and calls for immediate implementation of planetary health education and research, and the transition to climate-resilient and low-carbon health systems in order to build a healthy, sustainable, and just future for all.
Interested in learning more about planetary health and sustainable health systems?
Explore the information and resources below to learn more about planetary health. Contact Elise Sammons if you have questions or want to discuss how you can get involved in the planetary health effort at Dalhousie.
What We're Doing
Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine has established a Planetary Health Committee comprised of Faculty, Staff and Learners to provide recommendations on how we can implement the actions outlined in the declaration. The committee includes members from the Faculties of Health and Dentistry. We are committed to working across disciplines to contribute to a coordinated effort and to have a larger impact.
Based on the work done by the Planetary Health Curriculum working group as part of the UGME Curriculum Refresh, a Planetary Health lecture and case have been added to the undergraduate medical core curriculum.
Working together with CASCADES and the Healthy Populations Institute, we are facilitating elective learning opportunities for medical and other health professions students in the areas of planetary health and sustainable health systems through:
Dalhousie University is prioritizing sustainability on its campuses and was recently recognized as a top performer in the 2023 Sustainable Campus Index.
We are working with the Dalhousie University Office of Sustainability to use and promote their programs to reduce emissions and waste including:
Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Expo - March 10, 2025. Dalhousie University’s 2025 SDG Expo, a conference-style event showcasing interdisciplinary efforts to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through research, innovation, and community collaboration. This fair brings together researchers, vendors, and organizations working towards a more sustainable future on and off Dalhousie campuses.
Past Planetary Health Events at Dalhousie
November 5, 19, 26, 2024 Interprofessional Education Mini-Course "Healthcare in a changing climate: the need for planetary and sustainable health systems"
October 2024 Nourishing People, Planet and Communities: A Panel Discussion on Sustainable and Healthy Dietary Patterns, October 8, 2024
June 2024 Dalhousie Hub, CASCADES Summer Institute in Sustainable Health Systems
March 2024 Fireside Chat with Dr. Fiona Miller, Lead for the Collaborative Centre for Climate, Health & Sustainable Health Care at University of Toronto
March 2024 Dalhousie Crossroads Conference, Moving Forward: Sustainable Approaches for Health
January 2024 Dalhousie Mini-Med School Medicine and Planetary Health: What We Can Do, Dr. Nabha Shetty, Dalhousie University
June 2023 Dalhousie Hub, CASCADES Summer Institute in Sustainable Health Systems
June 2022 Planetary Health Speaker Series, Dr. Samantha Green, University of Toronto Faculty Lead in Climate and Health
June 2022 10th Annual Thomas Fear & Alice Morgans Fear Memorial Conference, Planetary Health and the Climate Crisis: Our Planet, Our Health, Our Responsibility
June 2022 Dalhousie Hub, CASCADES Summer Institute in Sustainable Health Systems
April 2022 Planetary Health Speaker Series, Dr. Chantelle Rizan, Brighton and Sussex Medical School
2023 Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health
On Monday, October 30, 2023 the Office of Community Partnerships and Global Health hosted the inaugural Dr. Tarunendu Ghose Visiting Scholar in Global Health. Dr. Andrea MacNeill, a leading expert in planetary health and sustainable healthcare systems, gave a talk entitled: “From Net Zero to Net Positive: The Practice of Planetary Healthcare”.
