For the first time in Cyprus, a stakeholders’ awareness event on planetary health took place at the Mayor House of Strovolos, the biggest municipality in the Nicosia city of Cyprus. The scientific field of planetary health deals with the two-way relationship between the state of natural ecosystems and human health. The event was co-organized by the Office of the Commissioner for the Environment and the Cyprus International Institute of Cyprus for Environmental and Public Health at the Cyprus University of Technology, which is an official member of the global network of universities for planetary health (planetary health alliance). The May 21st event was entitled "Planetary Health and our Health" and attracted the interest of public and private stakeholders as well as citizens. The aim of the event was to highlight the ensuing environmental degradation and the overexploitation of the use of natural resources to the expense of human health, i.e., the emergence of the concept of planetary health. The take home message of the event according to all stakeholders present in the event was the immediate need to bring awareness about the close interaction between the status of natural ecosystems and that of our human health and well-being.
The event was launched with a keynote presentation by the Commissioner for the Environment Mrs. Ioanna Panagiotou, who welcomed the audience and congratulated the organizers on the importance of such events, while stressing the importance in helping to raise public awareness about environment and human health issues.
The Mayor of Strovolos municipality, Mr. Andreas Papacharalambous highlighted the importance given by the Municipality in addressing environmental issues such as energy saving projects as measures that can help mitigate climate change.
The General Director of the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation, Mr. Vasileios Tsakalos, stressed the importance of taking actions that will target immediately on the mitigation of the human impact on the environment.
Mr. Lakis Mesimeris of the Department of the Environment, on behalf of the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, conveyed the Ministry’s warm greetings for such initiatives as well as for the new scientific field of Planetary Health, which becomes vital, as the signs of environmental burden of disease become more and more obvious. Mr. Mesimeris added that all environmental actions and human health incidence patterns should now be considered as interrelated and holistically studied.
A technical presentation was followed by Dr. Konstantinos Makris, who introduced the concept of Planetary Health to the attendees and presented the main drivers that influence planetary health and lead to higher burden of disease patterns. The presentation was enriched with everyday examples of societal issues that directly pertain to planetary health. A discussion followed with the public, which showed strong concerns about the observed environmental burden and the possible associations with human health and the actions that society and the state should take to mitigate the current situation. All attendees agreed on the need to involve higher education in promoting planetary health, the creation of green jobs, and the inclusion of comprehensive sustainability plans in the nation’s strategic plans to tackle major societal challenges.
The event concluded with the movie Albatross that explains the life cycle of these birds as they are affected by microplastics pollution that is present in the birds’ food web, delivering strong messages about our involvement and the importance of bringing awareness for this important topic of planetary health.
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For the first time in Cyprus, a stakeholders’ awareness event on planetary health took place at the Mayor House of Strovolos, the biggest municipality in the Nicosia city of Cyprus. The scientific field of planetary health deals with the two-way relationship between the state of natural ecosystems and human health. The event was co-organized by the Office of the Commissioner for the Environment and the Cyprus International Institute of Cyprus for Environmental and Public Health at the Cyprus University of Technology, which is an official member of the global network of universities for planetary health (planetary health alliance). The May 21st event was entitled "Planetary Health and our Health" and attracted the interest of public and private stakeholders as well as citizens. The aim of the event was to highlight the ensuing environmental degradation and the overexploitation of the use of natural resources to the expense of human health, i.e., the emergence of the concept of planetary health. The take home message of the event according to all stakeholders present in the event was the immediate need to bring awareness about the close interaction between the status of natural ecosystems and that of our human health and well-being.
The event was launched with a keynote presentation by the Commissioner for the Environment Mrs. Ioanna Panagiotou, who welcomed the audience and congratulated the organizers on the importance of such events, while stressing the importance in helping to raise public awareness about environment and human health issues.
The Mayor of Strovolos municipality, Mr. Andreas Papacharalambous highlighted the importance given by the Municipality in addressing environmental issues such as energy saving projects as measures that can help mitigate climate change.
The General Director of the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation, Mr. Vasileios Tsakalos, stressed the importance of taking actions that will target immediately on the mitigation of the human impact on the environment.
Mr. Lakis Mesimeris of the Department of the Environment, on behalf of the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, conveyed the Ministry’s warm greetings for such initiatives as well as for the new scientific field of Planetary Health, which becomes vital, as the signs of environmental burden of disease become more and more obvious. Mr. Mesimeris added that all environmental actions and human health incidence patterns should now be considered as interrelated and holistically studied.
A technical presentation was followed by Dr. Konstantinos Makris, who introduced the concept of Planetary Health to the attendees and presented the main drivers that influence planetary health and lead to higher burden of disease patterns. The presentation was enriched with everyday examples of societal issues that directly pertain to planetary health. A discussion followed with the public, which showed strong concerns about the observed environmental burden and the possible associations with human health and the actions that society and the state should take to mitigate the current situation. All attendees agreed on the need to involve higher education in promoting planetary health, the creation of green jobs, and the inclusion of comprehensive sustainability plans in the nation’s strategic plans to tackle major societal challenges.
The event concluded with the movie Albatross that explains the life cycle of these birds as they are affected by microplastics pollution that is present in the birds’ food web, delivering strong messages about our involvement and the importance of bringing awareness for this important topic of planetary health.
