Planetary Health refers to the interdependence of human and environmental health. It is an interdisciplinary research field and global movement that explores the consequences of environmental change on human health. Planetary health refers to "the health of human civilization and the state of the natural systems on which it depends." In 2015, the Rockefeller Foundation–Lancet Commission on Planetary Health launched the concept which is currently being developed towards a new health science with over 25 areas of expertise.
Background and milestones There are a number of ideas and concepts that can be understood as precursors to the concept of planetary health. According to Susan Prescott, the term "planetary health" emerged from the environmental and holistic health movements of the 1970-80s. In 1980, Friends of the Earth expanded the World Health Organization's definition of health, stating, "health is a state of complete physical, mental, social and ecological well-being and not merely the absence of disease - personal health involves planetary health." James Lovelock created the term "Planetary Medicine" in 1986.Lovelock, J. E. (1986). Geophysiology: A new look at earth science. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 67(4), 392-397. In 1993 the Norwegian physician Per Fugelli wrote: "The patient Earth is sick. Global environmental disruptions can have serious consequences for human health. It's time for doctors to give a world diagnosis and advise on treatment." In the 1990s, a model curriculum Terra Medicine (Planetary Medicine) was developed at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt as part of the Altmühltal Agenda 21 project.Stappen, R.: Terramedizin und Master for Sustainable Development – Zwei Konzepte für innovative. Modellstudiengänge. In: Stadt-Umland-Perspektiven – Zukunftsfähige Regionen in Europa. 2000, ISBN 3-00-007218-7, S. 284–285. In 2000, James Lovelock published his book Gaia: The Practical Science of Planetary Medicine.
Milestones
In March 2014 an issue of the medical journal The Lancet called for a movement for planetary health to transform the field of public health, which has traditionally focused on the health of human populations without necessarily considering the surrounding natural ecosystems. The proposal recognized the emerging threats to natural and human-made systems that support humanity.
In 2015, the Rockefeller Foundation and The Lancet launched the Rockefeller Foundation–Lancet Commission on Planetary Health. The Planetary Health Alliance was founded in December 2015, by Harvard University, together with the Wildlife Conservation Society and other partner organizations. The Rockefeller Foundation Economic Council on Planetary Health at the Oxford Martin School was established on 1 June 2017 to further define the new discipline of planetary health. The open-access journal Lancet Planetary Health published its inaugural issue in April 2017.
The São Paulo Declaration on Planetary Health is a multi-stakeholder call to action co-created by the global Planetary Health community at the 2021 Planetary Health Annual Meeting in São Paulo, Brazil. The declaration calls on governments, the private sector, civil society, and the general public to commit to the Great Transition to safeguard a healthy and equitable future for humanity and protect all life on Earth.
In 2022, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first UN environmental conference "United Nations Conference on the Human Environment" in Stockholm 1972, the UN published the report: 'UN Conference Stockholm+50: A Healthy Planet for the Prosperity of All - Our Responsibility, Our Opportunity'.Report UN-Conference Stockholm+50: a healthy planet for the prosperity of all – our responsibility, our opportunityUnited Nations'
In 2023 the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada published the "Academic Health Institutions' Declaration on Planetary Health," which calls on all academic health institutions throughout the world to take immediate action to halt both the negative impact of their activities on the planet's natural systems, and to institute adaptive and regenerative measures, including through advocacy. More than 40 academic health institutions have signed the declaration. These include medical schools, faculties of medicine, schools of nursing, schools of public health, and other health-related academic institutions from various countries including Canada, India, Finland, Dominican Republic, South Africa, Germany, Portugal, Indonesia, and others.
The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences published a comprehensive report in June 2023 on the state of planetary health research and the future research agenda, which has relevance not only for the Netherlands but also internationally (Planetary Health Advisory Report).
In April 2024, the Global Planetary Health Roadmap and Action Plan, a map to guide a path forward for Planetary Health was created by over 100 members of a worldwide community, building on the principles and call to action of the 2021 São Paulo Declaration on Planetary Health. The roadmap encompasses key domains, such as governance, education, business, and communications, providing a strategic framework to nurture this growing movement and safeguard the health and well-being of all life on Earth.
Research paradigms and agenda Drawing from the definition of health – "a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity" – as well as principles articulated in the preamble of the constitution of the World Health Organization, The Lancet Commission report elaborated that planetary health refers to the "achievement of the highest attainable standard of health, wellbeing, and equity worldwide through judicious attention to the human systems – political, economic, and social – that shape the future of humanity and the Earth's natural systems that define the safe environmental limits within which humanity can flourish."
The report laid down the overarching principles guiding the idea of planetary health. One is that human health depends on "flourishing natural systems and the wise stewardship of those natural systems". Human activities, such as energy generation and food production, have led to substantial global effects on the Earth's systems, prompting scientists to refer to the modern times as the Anthropocene.
The Planetary Health Education Framework, developed in 2021 by the Planetary Health Alliance, aims to guide the education of global citizens, practitioners, and professionals able and willing to address complex planetary health challenges. The framework also seeks to inspire all peoples across the globe to create, restore, steward, and conserve healthy ecosystems for a thriving human civilization. The framework considers five foundational domains that form the essence of Planetary Health knowledge, values, and practice: (1) interconnection with nature, (2) the Anthropocene and health, (3) equity and social justice, (4) movement building and systems change, and (5) systems thinking and complexity.
A group of Earth system and environmental scientists led by Johan Rockström from the Stockholm Resilience Centre proposed the concept of nine planetary boundaries within which humanity can continue to develop and thrive for generations to come. According to a 2024 update, six of the planetary boundaries – climate change, biosphere integrity, biogeochemical flows, land-system change, freshwater use, and novel entities-had already been exceeded. A seventh boundary, ocean acidification is approaching its threshold.
The Rockefeller Foundation–Lancet Commission on Planetary Health report concluded that urgent and transformative actions are needed to protect present and future generations. One important area which required immediate attention was the system of governance and organization of human knowledge, which was deemed inadequate to address the threats to planetary health.
The report made several overarching recommendations. One was to improve governance to aid the integration of social, economic, and environmental policies and for the creation, synthesis, and application of interdisciplinary knowledge. The authors called for solutions based on the redefinition of prosperity to focus on the enhancement of quality of life and delivery of improved health for all, together with respect for the integrity of natural systems.
International research agenda for planetary health
In June 2023, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences presented their planetary health report KNAW (2023). Planetary Health. An emerging field to be developed, Amsterdam Planetary Health, An emerging field to be developed based on a two-year consultative process. Many knowledge gaps were identified in the field of planetary health. A review of the literature and subsequent consultation with experts resulted in a longlist of more than one hundred specific knowledge gaps.KNAW:Longlist ofknowledge gaps in Planetary Health Knowledge for the health impacts of global environmental change on human health are incomplete, pathways are poorly understood, the effectiveness of mitigation and adaptation measures are still unclear, how timely policy and behaviour change can be realised. The Academy concluded that: "Filling all planetary health knowledge gaps requires an international collaborative effort in research funding". The Academy will cooperate with international partner and 'umbrella academies' (such as EASAC, FEAM and ALLEA) to take this agenda forward.KNAW (2023). Planetary Health. An emerging field to be developed, p. 70 Amsterdam
In 2025 the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report GEO-7 found that investing in planetary health can deliver trillions in additional global GDP, avoid millions of deaths and reduce poverty and hunger. Nutrition and diet are important contributors to and indicators of planetary health. Diets, agriculture, and technology must adjust to sustain population projections upwards of 9 billion while reducing harmful consequences on the environment through food waste and carbon-intensive diets. A focus of planetary health research is nutritional solutions that are sustainable for the human species and the environment, and the generation of scientific research and political will to create and implement desired solutions. In January 2019, an international commission created the planetary health diet.
Planetary health aims to seek out further solutions to global human and environmental sustainability through collaboration and research across all sectors, including the economy, energy, agriculture, water, and health. Biodiversity loss, exposure to pollutants, climate change, and fuel consumption are all issues that threaten human and health, and are, as such, foci of the field. A number of researchers think that it is actually humanity's destruction of biodiversity and the invasion of wild landscapes that creates the conditions for malaria,Chaves, L.S.M., Fry, J., Malik, A. et al. Global consumption and international trade in deforestation-associated commodities could influence malaria risk. Nat Commun 11, 1258 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14954-1 and new diseases such as COVID-19. Some propose incorporating concern for the impact of digital technology in planetary health and health promotion, including the impact of generative AI on climate, biodiversity, and pollution.
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