CAFE Winter 2024 Report

Winter 2024 Update from Dr Sarah Bartlett

We asked you where we should prioritise our efforts.  We were grateful for your engagement and the response to the survey was really helpful, so thank you! You said we should prioritise our own carbon footprint ( renewable power, sustainable travel and sustainable menu)  followed by educational resources (including public education, symposia for healthcare professionals on health effects of climate change and mitigating climate impact) and policy (written statements to government and news articles).

Further, we are subscribed to the UKHACC and have signed up to their 11 commitments

We are pleased to announce that one of our members, Professor Jill Belch, has been elected as a Trustee of UKHACC.  She has in addition led some excellent work around air pollution affecting Scottish schools which has been published in the BMJ. Funding cuts are making this work challenging, as they are most things. 

Trying to reduce our own carbon footprint is the most difficult of all the objectives. The college is a listed building and it is very expensive to  get solar panels, wind energy. We could switch suppliers –this is still on the table but takes time to get through the committees and council. The college is building its international profile and this requires flights. However, many events are hybrid to reduce travel, and the college faculty will travel to partner nations for ceremonies rather than all the delegates travelling to Scotland. The catering is being reviewed currently with a view to reducing meat from ruminant animals and increasing provision of good quality vegetarian food. We have been in conversation with the College council about disinvesting from fossil fuels. 

We have successfully hosted several webinars and series addressing the health consequences of climate change and have resources (free open access e-learning) on how to mitigate your professional carbon footprint as a physician. We have been in touch with the JRCPTB to advocate for curriculum changes.

We have also participated in consultation with the government, co-signed letters to government and published several articles – particularly in respect to air pollution. 

We know we still have a lot of work to do and we are still trying to further reduce our impact on the environment. Our College Advisory Forum is open to any interested members – please email d.cleeland@rcpe.ac.uk for more information.