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. 

Online environmental physiotherapy workshops at the 9th International week HAN University Nijmegen

This years HAN University of Applied Sciences 9th International Week - Connecting localism to globalism: Critical perspectives on allied health professions - will feature a host of interesting workshops, lectures and seminars. Two of these are highly relevant to...

Co-creating health and wellbeing

“At least I can still become an Adaptive Surfer!” As I surface in ICU a flash of hope captures my imagination, lifts my spirits, and draws me forward with the promise of adventure. Lying flat ‘splat’ on my back my worldview is limited to perforated ceiling tiles and...

Revealing the ecological consequences of research and education: Exploring carbon footprint and management strategies

In the recent years as awareness of climate change and environmental degradation has heightened, so too has the scrutiny on human activities and their ecological footprints. Research and education are not exempt from their own environmental impacts. Laboratories hum...

Training beyond the health sciences to promote ecologically grounded physiotherapy

Humans are intrinsically and dynamically tied to the environment. Not only do we shape the environment that we inhabit, but the environment also shapes our behaviours. Of particular relevance to physiotherapists, the environment influences human motor behaviour. J.J....

If you have any thoughts, ideas or questions about environmental physiotherapy,
we would love to hear from you anytime

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