Advancing an environmentally responsible physiotherapy

 

The world faces complex and interrelated crises… Climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, rapid urbanization, geopolitical conflict and militarization, demographic change, population displacement, poverty, and widespread inequity create risks of future crises even more severe than those experienced today. Responses require investments that integrate planetary, societal, community and individual health and well-being (WHO 2021 Geneva Charter for Wellbeing)

 

 The impact of human activities on our planet’s natural systems has been intensifying rapidly in the past several decades, leading to disruption and transformation of most natural systems. These disruptions in the atmosphere, oceans, and across the terrestrial land surface are not only driving species to extinction, they pose serious threats to human health and wellbeing. Characterising and addressing these threats requires a paradigm shift (Myers, 2017)

Action at the level of direct drivers of nature decline, although necessary, is not sufficient … a sustainable global future’ is ‘only possible with urgent transformative change that tackles the root causes: the interconnected economic, socio-cultural, demographic, political, institutional, and technological indirect drivers behind the direct drivers (Diaz et al., 2019)

About

An international community of academics, clinicians, practitioners and students interested in exploring and advancing the field of environmental physiotherapy. 

Blog

Follow our latest musings on environmental physiotherapy. Ideas, inspiration, news, publications, events, and more. 

Join

Become part of the first international community of physiotherapists with an interest in researching, developing, and practising physiotherapy at a planetary scale. 

Resources

A growing selection of resources carefully selected by members of the EPA to inspire your thinking and practice of environmental physiotherapy. 

A physiotherapist by profession, an environmentalist by passion

I was born and raised in Malta, a small island found in the middle of the Mediterranean that is hit with extreme currents from the North (coming from Greece and Italy) and South (from Libya and Tunis). Experiencing an island life, I always felt very close to the sea,...

The History of Light Therapy

Historically, light treatment has roots in ancient Egypt, India, and Greece, as “heliotherapy” (natural sunlight) for the treatment of skin diseases. Modern phototherapy (artificial light) has its origins in the latter part of the 19th century, with the observation in...

Allied Health Professionals as agents for change: Chief Sustainability Officer’s Clinical Fellow

Over the last 10 years or more, many of us have been gradually moving towards more sustainable choices in our personal lives. Choosing greener modes of transport, making more plant-based food choices, embracing pre-loved clothing and shopping more locally. There is a...

Active Transport: Ideas to improve the health of patients and planet

How many of your patients arrived to their physio appointments last week by car? For me, it was 100% of those not opting for telehealth. An empty bike rack sat outside the clinic and nobody approached from the bus stop across the street. Granted, it is winter in...

If you have any thoughts, ideas or questions about environmental physiotherapy,
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