Health and the environment in the WHO European Region: creating resilient communities and supportive environments
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World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe
Abstract
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43 p.
Many public health challenges of our times, such as those associated with demographic changes, growing health inequalities and increasing incidence of noncommunicable diseases, have complex connections to the physical environment. The environment must be recognised as not only a source of potential hazards, but also a health-promoting and health-protecting asset that can extend life, improve its quality and increase overall well-being. A comprehensive understanding of the relationship between health and the environment requires a forward-looking perspective and insight into the composite interactions among the physical, biological and social spheres. The WHO Regional Office for Europe supports the efforts of its Member States and partners to understand and navigate this complexity and to identify policies and actions that can benefit the environment and human health, using the best available evidence to guide national and international decision-making in different sectors. Great opportunities for progress lie in changing consumption patterns and fostering healthy and environmentally friendly approaches in energy, transport, housing, urban management and agriculture, as well as in the health sector itself. Yet there is a need to further develop the evidence and arguments in support of these changes, along with the guidance to address new and emerging issues, which are often characterized by a high degree of uncertainty. “Health 2020” – the European health policy framework adopted in 2012 – recognizes that environmental determinants of health are as important as biological, social and behavioural determinants for creating, maintaining and restoring health. Recognition of the health benefits of a sustainable, low-carbon economy and sound environmental policies should drive the development of policies that will ensure both the health of people and the health of our planet. In turn, this requires collaboration among different sectors. The Regional Office is actively pursuing this direction, as demonstrated in this publication and notably through the European Environment and Health Process, the policy platform that brings together key sectors and stakeholders in a unique governance mechanism established at the first Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health, in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1989.
Many public health challenges of our times, such as those associated with demographic changes, growing health inequalities and increasing incidence of noncommunicable diseases, have complex connections to the physical environment. The environment must be recognised as not only a source of potential hazards, but also a health-promoting and health-protecting asset that can extend life, improve its quality and increase overall well-being. A comprehensive understanding of the relationship between health and the environment requires a forward-looking perspective and insight into the composite interactions among the physical, biological and social spheres. The WHO Regional Office for Europe supports the efforts of its Member States and partners to understand and navigate this complexity and to identify policies and actions that can benefit the environment and human health, using the best available evidence to guide national and international decision-making in different sectors. Great opportunities for progress lie in changing consumption patterns and fostering healthy and environmentally friendly approaches in energy, transport, housing, urban management and agriculture, as well as in the health sector itself. Yet there is a need to further develop the evidence and arguments in support of these changes, along with the guidance to address new and emerging issues, which are often characterized by a high degree of uncertainty. “Health 2020” – the European health policy framework adopted in 2012 – recognizes that environmental determinants of health are as important as biological, social and behavioural determinants for creating, maintaining and restoring health. Recognition of the health benefits of a sustainable, low-carbon economy and sound environmental policies should drive the development of policies that will ensure both the health of people and the health of our planet. In turn, this requires collaboration among different sectors. The Regional Office is actively pursuing this direction, as demonstrated in this publication and notably through the European Environment and Health Process, the policy platform that brings together key sectors and stakeholders in a unique governance mechanism established at the first Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health, in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1989.