Planetary Health Lecture: Tackling Climate Change and Advancing Planetary Health in the Philippines

One of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries, the Philippines is already experiencing the physical and mental health effects of the climate emergency – from extreme weather events and sea level rise to the growing climate anxiety among young people. Despite these problems, the Filipino people have been demonstrating resilience, fighting for justice, and pioneering the new field of planetary health, which recognizes the inextricable link between the health of people and that of the planet. This talk will present the lived experiences of the Filipino people of climate change’s health impacts, showcase the actions taken by local communities to live and survive in the climate frontlines, and provide an update on recent developments and potential opportunities for building domestic planetary health action capacity for tackling the seemingly insurmountable threats brought about by the evolving planetary crisis.

This is a hybrid event; food will be provided for those who can attend in person. See the zoom link for this event below:

https://yale.zoom.us/j/2449851749

About the Speaker:

Renzo R. Guinto, MD DrPH is one of the world’s pioneers in the new discipline of planetary health and a leading advocate for the decolonization of global health. He is the Associate Professor of the Practice of Global Public Health and Inaugural Director of the Planetary and Global Health Program of the St. Luke’s Medical Center College of Medicine in the Philippines. Recently, he was also the Chief Planetary Health Scientist and Co-Founder of the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Renzo is a member of the National Panel of Technical Experts of the Climate Change Commission of the Philippines, and convener of Planetary Health Philippines – a community of Filipino scholars and practitioners for advancing the new discipline of planetary health. An Obama Foundation Asia-Pacific Leader and Aspen Institute New Voices Fellow, Renzo has served as consultant for various organizations including the World Health Organization, World Bank, USAID, Wellcome Trust, and Health Care Without Harm, and been a member of numerous international committees, advisory and editorial boards, and professional networks, including the editorial advisory board of The Lancet Planetary Health, and five Lancet Commissions such as The O’Neill-Lancet Commission on Racism, Structural Discrimination and Global Health (Georgetown University) and The Lancet Planetary Health Commission on Sustainable Healthcare (Yale University and University of British Columbia). Renzo obtained his Doctor of Public Health from Harvard University and Doctor of Medicine from the University of the Philippines Manila, and received further training from Oxford, Copenhagen, Western Cape, and East-West Center (Hawaii). He has traveled to and lectured in nearly 60 countries and 100 universities across the world; published more than 150 reports and articles in scientific journals, books, and popular media; and directed and produced short films that communicate the message of planetary healing to the world. In 2020, he was included by Tatler Magazine in its Gen.T List of 400 leaders of tomorrow who are shaping Asia’s future. In 2022, Renzo was named one of The Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines for his contributions to health and medicine and for pioneering the field of planetary health in the country