Promoting environmental sustainability, equity and health in Victorian Primary Care Partnerships

Sustainability and Equity in Urban Development (S&EUD): A Content Analysis of "Bright Spots" from the Accelerating City Equity (ACE) Project

Sustainable and equitable urban development (S&EUD) is vital to promote healthy lives and well-being for all ages. Recognizing equity as core to urban development is essential to ensure that cities are inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable. The aim of this study was to identify and assess the elements of equity and sustainability in exemplary bright spots using the ACE Framework and the United Nations' 5 Ps of Sustainable Development. A content analysis process was performed to identify initial case studies, obtain bright spot information, and select final case studies. The exemplary bright spots selected were assessed for drivers of equity and the five pillars of sustainability. Results showed that equity and sustainability have become key considerations in urban development work. Numerous effective strategies and outcomes identified in the exemplary bright spots could be replicated in other contexts.

Greening Family Medicine clinic operations and clinical care, where do we start? A scoping review of toolkits and aids

BACKGROUND

There is a pressing need for healthcare to respond to the climate crisis. Family physicians, given their central role in community healthcare provision, are strategically placed to lead, support, and promote sustainable healthcare, yet guidance on how to do this is fragmented.

OBJECTIVE

To identify and evaluate toolkits and aids on sustainable healthcare to act as a curated resource for family physicians and their care teams interested in delivering evidence-based sustainable healthcare in their clinical practices.

METHODS

A scoping review was completed of the published and grey literature across 4 databases and 2 search engines to identify articles and aids/toolkits from 1990 to present. Toolkits were subsequently evaluated for purpose, evidence-base, implementation process, adaptability to family medicine, and outcome measures.

RESULTS

The search identified 17,751 articles. Screening resulted in 20 published articles and 11 toolkits. Most articles presented simple checklists to support greening clinic initiatives, 3 studies focussed on partial carbon footprint analyses, and 4 on educational initiatives. Toolkits ranged in sustainability topics and degree of depth covered, and adaptability and outcome measures. None of the resources identified have been formally evaluated for effectiveness.

CONCLUSIONS

A range of aids exist to support greening of clinic operations; however, there is a significant gap in the literature for greening clinical care. Two toolkits were found to be comprehensive, one requiring tracking and reporting of sustainability initiatives. This scoping review provides a starting point for motivated family doctors and community clinics to initiate change and support more sustainable healthcare.

Progress in understanding climate change's effects on children and youth

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Climate change remains a major threat to the health and well-being of children globally. This article reviews the myriad health effects of climate change on children throughout their lives and discusses ways in which the general pediatrician can be an advocate for climate solutions.

RECENT FINDINGS

Rising atmospheric temperatures, increased air pollution, and destabilized weather patterns all lead to adverse health outcomes for children and adverse obstetric outcomes. However, the impact of climate change is not evenly distributed. Children living in poverty are more likely to be adversely impacted by the changing climate.

SUMMARY

Ongoing and emerging research suggests that children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The primary care pediatrician is encouraged to see this irrefutable evidence as a call to action for advocacy on behalf of our patients and the planet.

Toward Environmental Sustainability, Health, and Equity: How the Psychological Characteristics of College Students Are Reflected in Understanding Sustainable Development Goals

This study aimed to identify how the psychological characteristics of college students are reflected in understanding sustainable development goals (SDGs) by examining college students' psychological characteristics, including attitude, interests, motivations, and self-efficacy, through the Sustainable Development Goals Psychological Inventory (SDGPI). The relationships among SDGs attitude, SDGs interest, SDGs motivation, and SDGs self-efficacy were analyzed by Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients. In addition, the Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis one-way analysis of variance were used to explore the differences among the college student groups in terms of gender, grade, and major in relation to attitude and personal characteristics. Attitude scores based on regression analysis were used to predict college students' interest, motivation, and self-efficacy in relation to the SDGs. According to the results, (a) the college students considered the three most important SDGs to be good health and well-being (SDG 3) (49.72%), quality education (SDG 4) (41.39%), and no poverty (SDG 1) (32.22%), while the three least important SDGs were decent work and economic growth (SDG 8) (41.11%), partnerships for the goals (SDG 17) (38.06%), and response consumption and institutions (SDG 12) (30.83%); (b) the SDGPI had a high reliability, with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.942; (c) there was a significant positive correlation between attitude and the variables of interest, motivation, and self-efficacy; (d) differences in attitudes, interest, and motivation between men and women were distinct and women scored much higher in these three subscales than men; (e) attitude could explain significant variance in interest, motivation and self-efficacy. In addition, attitude, interest, and motivation could account for self-efficacy. This study supports the development of sustainability education (SE) at the college level by providing new insights into college students' psychological characteristics in relation to the SDGs.

A socioecological discourse of care or an economistic discourse: which fits better with transition?

OBJECTIVE

To analyse a 'socioecological' health promotion discourse and its relationship to orthodox 'economistic' discourse in Australia.

METHOD

In research on health promotion addressing equity and environmental sustainability, we identified a socioecological discourse, based on an ethic of care for people and ecosystems. Using Foucault's concept of discourse as a regime that produces and legitimises certain kinds of knowledge, and ecofeminist historical analysis, we analysed this discourse and its relationship to economism.

RESULTS

The socioecological discourse takes social and ecological wellbeing as primary values, while economism takes production and trade of goods and services, measured by money, as primary. Following British invasion, property-owning white men in Australia had the right to control and profit from land, trade, and the work of women and subordinate peoples. A knowledge regime using money as a primary measure reflects this history. In contrast, a First Nations' primary value expressed in the study was 'look after the land and the children'. Conclusion and implications for public health: Public health often attempts to express value through economism, using monetary measures. However, socioecological discourse, expressed for example through direct measures of social and ecological wellbeing, appears more fit for purpose in promoting a fair and sustainable society.