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ANHE News Newsletter

ANHE News and Events for November 2024

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This month AHNE headed to Baku, Azerbaijan to participate in COP29!  Milagros Elia, ANHE’s Program Manager of Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy laid out why it was so important for ANHE to be there:

The presence of nurses at COP29 was absolutely critical so that we could advocate for health to be included in climate change policies. We were also able to meet up with partners and collaborate on ways to push forward actions that mitigate climate change. Further, the conference was a chance to promote sustainable solutions for healthcare systems both in the US and globally
Milagros Elia, ANHE’s Program Manager of Climate and Clear Energy Advocacy

A major point of discussion at this year’s COP was the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG), an agreement on the amount of money that will be provided to the countries with constrained economies who are most impacted by climate change. This new NCQG would replace the original goal outlined by the Paris Agreement which was 100 billion per year starting in 2016 and extended until 2025. At the close of COP, wealthy countries pledged $300 billion per year by 2035.

The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments’ Executive Director, Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN issued the following statement: 

“COP29 failed to deliver an outcome that prioritized health and justice by ensuring that countries that are bearing the burden of the climate crisis have the  financing needed to adequately respond to climate-related impacts. The deal that was forced through, despite objections from countries in the Global South, is grossly inadequate, falling significantly short of the at least $1.3 trillion per year in public financing that nurses were calling for. 

In order for developing countries to build climate resilience, transition away from fossil fuels, and protect people’s health, the United States and historically large emitters must pay their fair share of climate finance. The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments will continue to call for an increase in majority grants-based climate financing and for meaningful and ambitious action from developed countries.

Unfortunately, the Biden administration did not release an updated National Determined Contribution (NDC), or updated emissions reduction commitment at COP29. With a looming lack of leadership on climate change from the incoming Trump Administration, nurses are calling on the Biden administration to announce an ambitious updated emissions reduction commitment at COP by the end of the year.”

CHECK OUT OUR COP29 COVERAGE

Dear friends,

In the wake of this month’s election results, I wanted to reach out to our many ANHE friends. I know that many of us are grieving and I hope you are making space to support your physical and mental health. A core value of ANHE is community and support of one another. Please join us in holding one another close and we are working on ways for ANHE nurses to come together in support of each other.

In the coming years the work of ANHE is going to be more important than ever. There are many times in the history of our country where amazing change has come from some really dark times. I truly believe that with nurses working together we can still make positive change and lay the groundwork for major transformations even in the light of these shifts in our country. Let us continue to come together in support of a healthy climate, environmental justice, clean water, and a world where every child is able to thrive. 

Here are some additional resources you can use to take care of yourself and connect with others:

Thank you so much for all you do in support of healthier environments. 

In solidarity,

Katie

 

 

 

ANHE has released a new episode of our podcast focused on our new PFAS toolkit! This episode is hosted by Beth Schenk, PhD, RN, FAAN, and features ANHE staff members Cristina Watkins, FNP-BC, Leka Rob, and public health professional Paloma Greenwald, RN, BSN, MA. We dive into the toolkit and analyzed how it has already been utilized by professionals across the country. 

The purpose of the toolkit is to provide useful information to guide clinical practice and decision making. Patients, community members or colleagues may present with questions around PFAS exposures, PFAS testing and/or results, health implications, and what actions they can take to reduce exposures. We hope this toolkit will be a valuable resource for providing guidance around these questions.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

Mark your calendars! The Campaign for Healthier Solutions National Week of Action is this December 2-8, 2024! Our friends at the Campaign for Healthier Solutions are working hard to get toxic products off of dollar store shelves in order to protect workers and environmental justice communities, and they need our help to pressure major dollar stores! 

Ways to take action December  2-8: 
 
1. Visit your local dollar store and deliver a letter to management. Ask the store manager to send the letter to headquarters.  

2. Email the executives/post on social media. 

PLEDGE TO PARTICIPATE

Are you a nurse working to reduce plastic in your practice? Help ANHE by sharing your story in a video for sharing on social media! The health care sector is an avid consumer of plastics, many of which are unnecessary or overused. If plastic is not adequately managed, this waste ends up in landfills or incinerated, entering the soil and water streams and contributing to air, water, and land pollution. Nurses are at the forefront of addressing plastic pollution. We want to inspire other nurses to take action! 

Please take a few minutes to set up a smartphone or video recording device and create a short 60 second or less video for ANHE to share. If preferred, multiple videos of 60 seconds or less can also be done. Please be sure to share your name, location, and the work you do as a nurse,
a brief description on how you are working to reduce plastics in the health sector, community, or at a policy level. If possible, please end your video with a call to action! If you don’t feel comfortable with video, you can send us your picture(s) and a short paragraph telling your story to cara@envirn.org

COMING UP…

Reducing Plastic Use in the Health Sector and Beyond

Be sure to register for this event, taking place on Tuesday, December 10 at 3PM ET with Barbara Sattler, DRPH, BS, RN, FAAN.  While this webinar will explore how climate change-associated weather patterns, extreme storms, and extreme heat events threaten both plant-based and animal-sourced food, we will also investigate how the predominant agricultural practices in the US are producing greenhouse gases, employing millions of pounds of fossil fuel-derived chemicals (including pesticides), and destroying ecosystems.

REGISTER HERE

Healing Circles

Last week, ANHE hosted a Nurse Led Healing Circle with Catherine Dodd, PhD, RN, FAAN and Karen White-Trevino RN, DNP, NE-BC. 

A core value of ANHE is community and support of one another. Post-election, we are working on ways for ANHE nurses to come together in support of each other.

We hope to continue these offerings as we move into 2025.

This is a critical moment for environmental justice and ANHE is at the forefront of the fight.

From addressing the health impacts of PFAS “forever chemicals” to advocating for policies that protect our air, water, and climate, we’re working alongside our communities to ensure healthier communities and a more sustainable world become a reality for us all. 

But we can’t do it alone.

Next month, we’re launching a giving campaign to help power this essential work. Your support will help us amplify nurses’ voices in the fight for environmental health and justice. Stay tuned to learn how you can join us in creating a safer, healthier future for all.

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