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More sustainability at the Faculty of Medicine: Good grades for Basel
The Faculty of Medicine Basel was assessed in the area of sustainability for the second time. Basel achieved particularly good results in the teaching category and outperformed other Swiss faculties. A total of eight higher education institutions in Switzerland were evaluated as part of the "Planetary Health Report Card" initiative by teams of students, alumni and co-workers of the faculty.
More and more medical faculties are focusing on the subject of sustainability: in 2024, eight Swiss faculties took part in the "Planetary Health Report Card" (PHRC) evaluation for the first time. The initiative assesses the sustainability efforts of medical universities in the categories of teaching, research, public relations, support for student initiatives and sustainability on campus. Basel has already made significant improvements since the first assessment in 2023. In the teaching category, Basel's human medicine curriculum achieved the top grades in a Swiss comparison. Suggestions for improvement were also developed for various areas.
A team consisting of three dedicated 1st and 2nd year Master's students, one PhD student and the faculty's project coordinator for sustainability coordinated this year's evaluation in Basel. They are united by their interest in the interactions between the environment and health: "We share the commitment and also the concern about the state of the environment and the ongoing climate crisis that is affecting our health. As future doctors, it is important to us that our university is committed to greater sustainability and therefore also to health," explains Thomas Bezonçon, 1st year medical student.
People around the world are already affected in many ways by the health implications of the climate crisis and other environmental changes such as biodiversity loss, air pollution and new chemical compounds. Switzerland and Central Europe are no exception. People in low- and middle-income countries are disproportionately exposed to health risks. The WHO recently described the climate crisis as the "greatest threat to human health in the 21st century" [1].
The Faculty of Medicine Basel recognizes the relevance of the subject of sustainability and the associated importance for health. It strives to contribute to the University of Basel's climate responsibility strategy through the sustainable development of medical teaching, research, administration and healthcare.
Planetary Health Report Card
The global initiative "Planetary Health Report Card" (PHRC) was initiated by students and annually assesses the sustainability efforts of over 150 medical higher education institutions in 18 countries. At each participating facility, teams of students and faculty representatives complete the analysis, which in turn is examined by external experts. Click here for Switzerland's Planetary Health Report Card.
More:
- On the topic of planetary health and sustainability in healthcare at the Faculty of Medicine Basel
- To the climate strategy of the University of Basel
- To Health for Future Basel
Contact:
- Francine Müller, Project Coordinator Sustainability at the Faculty of Medicine Basel(francine.mueller@clutterunibas.ch)
Caption: From left: Cristian Martucci, PhD student and academic co-worker at SwissTPH; Luc Lutz, Master's student; Lena Döbeli, Master's student; Thomas Beçonzon, Master's student; Francine Müller, Project Coordinator Sustainability
[1] World Health Organization. (2021). COP26 special report on climate change and health: the health argument for climate action.