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. 

Sustainability in orthopaedic physiotherapy and rehabilitation

With the goal of decarbonization and carbon neutrality in the health sectors of many countries by 2050, health professionals must implement systemic changes in clinical practice to reduce carbon use, whilst meeting equity targets and improving health outcomes. Methods...

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...

Presenting the EPT Agenda 2023 at the Canadian Conference for Global Health

This poster was developed for the Canadian Conference on Global Health: Global Health in a Changing Climate held from 19-22 October 2020. You can read and download the full EPT Agenda 2023 on www.eptagenda2023.com or contact Shaun Cleaver (PT, PhD) and Filip Maric...

Quando a Natureza Faz Parte da Cura: Um Atendimento de Fisioterapia no Jardim

Desde muito cedo me sentia em casa na natureza. O vento entre as folhas, o sol tocando a pele, o cheiro da terra depois da chuva, trazia uma sensação de equilíbrio e bem-estar que poucas coisas conseguiam proporcionar. Durante a graduação, percebi que me sentia melhor...

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

13 + 12 =