Planetary health:
A comprehensive approach to problem solving
What is planetary health?
Planetary health is a multi-disciplinary field that integrates the study of human health, the condition of the environment, and plant and animal life to better understand the changes and challenges facing world ecosystems.
It recognizes that outcomes are interconnected, and that problems cannot be resolved by applying corrective measures to isolated symptoms without addressing underlying transversal issues.
This comprehensive approach emphasizes regarding these challenges as a whole unit rather than focusing on individual elements.
Planetary health application
Numerous international frameworks, research institutions, and development organizations acknowledge the critical link between human activity that exerts significant influence on the natural world, and conversely, the susceptibility of humanity to the consequences of that influence.
A planetary health approach to problem solving offers a
practical path for developing solutions to meet the challenges outlined in such international agreements as the Sustainable Development Goals and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction as well as numerous works of scholarship.
Solutions can be identified and applied at all levels of human interaction with the environment - local, national, and international - that are scaled appropriately for the accessible resources.