The World Health Organization has stated that climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity and health professionals worldwide need to respond to the health harms caused by this unfolding crisis.

Most of Australia’s peak health bodies have endorsed the World Health Organization’s position statement on climate change that affirms its role as a leading determinant of health outcomes.

The APA is one of them.

We are also a member of the Climate and Health Alliance, Australia’s peak body on climate and health, which boasts a membership of more than 100 organisations.

The recognition of climate change as a health determinant and the organisation of health resources around the issue signal major progress in our commitment to a greener future. As pleasing as this is, we’re a long way away from significant and meaningful action to reach our climate goals.

Australia has made a formal commitment to reduce carbon emissions by 43 per cent on 2005 levels and to produce net zero emissions by 2050.

It is easy and common to underestimate the health sector’s impact on our climate.

Yet health is a high-waste, high-consumption sector.

We rely on single-use consumable items more than most industries in order to provide safe care.

Our institutions require energy 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Dedication to a sustainable, green health sector will have a palpable impact on our total climate footprint.

What we need now is grassroots action to manage these footprints—starting with ourselves, our departments and our practices.

Getting started is often the most difficult part, so it is reasonable to begin with building awareness.

You might consider conducting a waste audit to understand how much necessary and unnecessary waste your entity produces.

Are there ways to reduce your reliance on single-use materials? Understand the relationship between your energy needs and your energy consumption. How much energy waste could be prevented through better insulation or more mindful lighting practices?

We also need to put our voices to good use. Health practitioners hold privileged positions of influence in our communities.

More needs to be done to amplify these voices in the context of the climate-and-health conversation so that decision-makers and patients alike understand the relationship between the two.

Unfortunately, our health system doesn’t provide a lot of room for such discussions.

Pleasingly, on Friday 10 March, Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care Ged Kearney hosted a round table on climate and health.

At the time of writing, the round table is still a few days away in the future. I hope to be able to report on it more fully shortly, but the fact that a climate discussion framed around health is taking place at all is a positive thing.

The letter of invitation reaffirms the Albanese government’s commitment to developing a National Health and Climate Strategy, having established a new National Health, Sustainability and Climate Unit within the Department of Health and Aged Care to undertake
this work.

The round table aims to inform the development of the strategy and to hear the sector’s views on the action needed to reduce carbon emissions.

These are public commitments and we as a sector must hold the government to account.

While mandatory reporting on environmental, social and governance performance is still limited in Australia, it is anticipated that the regulatory burden and obligations to monitor and report will only increase.

It makes sense to start improving our organisations’ maturity and climate awareness now, before the stick of regulation comes into force.

Start with a commitment to reduce your carbon footprint, even by a little, and go from there.

It is not a stretch to say that our children’s futures depend on it.