Eco Health - EcoHealth 101: Education For Ecosystem Approaches

EcoHealth 101: Education For Ecosystem Approaches

Courses in ecosystem approaches to health have been developed and delivered in several North American and Australian universities. One innovative Canadian course involved a collaboration of all of Canada's veterinary colleges, and focused on integrative field cases in all parts of the country; another Canadian course was a joint effort of the medical school at the University of Western Ontario and the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph. In the years after 2003, communities of practice for ecosystem approaches to health in Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Africa (largely supported by the IDRC) created intensive graduate level courses that integrated systems approaches with participatory approaches, and used actual case studies so that students gained applied clinical experience in "transdisciplinary" problem solving (see www.copeh-canada.org for one example).

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the University of Wisconsin–Madison created a website to promote education in this area EcoHealth (Environmental Change and Our Health). The website examines the changes that are transforming Earth and what they can mean for our health.

This website is geared to middle-school students and their teachers, and delivers scientific information in a kid-friendly, engaging, and visually vibrant manner. Since its initial partnership with the Journey to Planet Earth television mini-series, hosted and narrated by actor Matt Damon and aired on PBS in Spring 2003 and 2004, the website has become an educational complement to this TV series, as well as a dynamic stand-alone tool for students and teachers. Since then, the site's appeal has grown far broader, reaching high-school students, and anyone interested in environmental and health issues—or simply wanting a reliable and fun resource for being able to sort the science from the sound bites. EcoHealth 101 provides the in-depth analysis and context behind today's headline news.

"The idea for the site grew from the positive feedback following public lectures I've given on global environmental health", says Dr. Jonathan Patz, associate professor professor at the University of Wisconsin & adjunct associate professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "'Students should really learn about how their health is tied so closely to the global environment,' was the comment I often heard."

"The site is very exciting because it deals with serious and thought-provoking topics", adds Dr. Patz. "Nonetheless, it shows middle-school students how to have fun with the visual elements and discover what potential solutions exist for alleviating the negative effects of climate change and other changes to our planet."

In a rapidly changing world, our school curriculum must expand to include accurate science on global warming, environmental degradation, and its negative effects on human, wildlife and ecosystem health. The mission of EcoHealth 101 is to educate and inform the next generation of leaders who may have the answers to today's problems. Chapters from the website include Global Warming, Stratospheric Ozone Depletion, The Balance of Nature, Modern Agriculture and Drinking Water, and Globalization and Disease Without Borders.

The site was reviewed for accuracy and fairness by science, health, and environmental experts in a wide range of specialties.

Visit http://ecohealth101.org.