Global Health Exhibit to Shine Spotlight on Climate Change and Planetary Health
This November, Main Street, in Forchheimer, will be transformed into an immersive cultural experience when our Global Health Center (GHC) partners with the Einstein Sustainability Club to organize its annual photo exhibit. The theme will be planetary health, which the Planetary Health Alliance has defined as “a solutions-oriented, transdisciplinary field and social movement focused on analyzing and addressing the impacts of human disruptions to Earth’s natural systems on human health and all life on Earth.”
Leadership of the Einstein Sustainability Club (from left): Emily Yamron, Joy Song, and Linda Nie
Images in the exhibit will encompass a broad range of topics affecting or resulting from climate change, including decreasing biodiversity, pollution, deforestation, increasing temperatures, extreme weather events, emergence of infectious diseases, and water scarcity. The photos will reflect examples local to our Bronx campus, as well as those affecting global planetary health.
Providence, R.I — Rhode Island has over 400 miles of coastline, which are reflected in the state’s nickname, “The Ocean State.” However, as sea levels rise, so do questions about the future of coastal communities around the globe. The Institute for Economics and Peace projects that by 2050, 1.2 billion people will be displaced due to climate change and resulting flooding.
“Climate change is a global health emergency,” said Linda Nie, a second-year medical student and member of Sustainability Club leadership. “It poses a serious risk to all aspects of our lives, with vulnerable populations facing disproportionately higher risks.”
She added, “Through this special photo exhibit, we aim to raise awareness of climate change and its effects, both locally and globally. We must act before it’s too late, urging action from policymakers and institutions, reducing our individual impact, and speaking up about the dire consequences if we do little or nothing to address this serious issue.”
“Climate change affects us all and is among the most pressing, urgent issues of our time,’ agreed Jill Raufman, associate director of the center and director of the medical student global health program. She continued, “One of the unique aspects of Einstein is how the theme of social justice runs through every part of it. Having students who are so committed to bringing awareness to climate change, its effects on health, and the need for environmental justice, offers hope and encouragement that we can make a difference if we each choose to act.
“The exhibit offers a way to open eyes and invite discussion,” noted Linda.
An Invitation to Students to Make Submissions
In recent weeks, the GHC and Einstein club have invited students to submit a single photo from their travels in the Bronx, greater New York area, or globally that depicts how climate change is affecting our environment. Students have until Monday, September 19, 2022, to make their submissions. Their image should be accompanied by a brief caption, including a title and between one to four sentences describing the scene. Submissions should be made using this Photograph Submission Form.
The exhibit also will include photos taken by Einstein students during their travels supported by an Einstein global health fellowship and other trips from throughout the world. It will be on display throughout November and into early December.
“Each photographer will receive the beautiful print that will be produced for the exhibit,” noted Jill. “The photos and their captions will encourage reflection on how we each can be part of the solution. We invite all members of our campus community to come view the exhibit, and we hope it will inspire.”
About the Einstein Sustainability Club
This photo was taken on a global health trip in remote Panamá, where many agricultural workers cultivate the arable land. Much of our understanding of how extreme heat impacts health comes from data gathered on workers in hot regions of the world. In Central America, for instance, chronic kidney disease of unknown origin (CKDu) has become a leading cause of hospitalization and mortality, with large numbers of agricultural workers dying from irreversible renal failure in recent years. Experts believe that CKDu may be a form of heat-stress nephropathy related to climate change.
The Einstein Sustainability Club is a chapter of Medical Students for a Sustainable Future. Its members are Einstein medical and graduate students who are passionate about improving environmental sustainability in healthcare and offering educational opportunities about the relationship between planetary and patient well-being.
During the past year, club members completed Einstein’s first published Planetary Health Report Card, a student-led review of the institution’s sustainability metrics. The group also has worked with faculty to integrate planetary health material into the core medical curriculum, including how the carbon footprint of healthcare can be mitigated and how climate change is currently impacting the health of patients.
Einstein Sustainability Club members have also been active in advocating for greater institutional reform and creating partnerships with local community organizations to promote planetary and community well-being. Students interested in joining the club and other members of the Einstein community who would like to collaborate on environmental sustainability can email einstein.sustainability@gmail.com.
Posted on: Tuesday, September 13, 2022