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. 

Reconnecting with nature helped me reconnect with myself and the world

During the worst years of my pain I became withdrawn and isolated, disconnected from the people, places, and experiences that mattered to me. My sole focus was pain and being rid of it so I could get on with my life and get back to being me. Back then, sitting was my...

¿Qué es el antropoceno?

¿Qué es el Antropoceno? Descubre 5 datos que debes conocer sobre este nuevo concepto. Dicho de forma más sencilla, la salud planetaria se asienta en tres características:1 Paul Crutzen, geoquímico holandés y Eugene Stoermer, biólogo americano proponen en el año 2000...

Adapting to the “New Normal”: Practical Strategies for Physical Therapists to Mitigate Wildfire Smoke Health Impacts

The 2023 wildfire season in Canada was the most destructive on record, burning over 15 million hectares —more than double the previous record. This rise in wildfire frequency and intensity poses significant challenges to public health and the entire healthcare system....

A call to include a perspective of sustainable development in physical therapy research

It is about time physiotherapists realize our potential as a profession that could make vital contributions to sustainable development, in healthcare and in society as a whole. Global environmental changes, such as climate change and loss of biodiversity, greatly...

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