Skip to main content
MD Program

Planetary Health

Leadership

Faculty Leadership: Yee Lam, MD

Student Leadership: Climate Leadership & Environmental Action Network (CLEAN)

Overview

The purpose of the Planetary Health Scholarly Concentration is to develop students’ understanding of how the perils of the escalating climate crisis impact human health and to train climate-conscious future physicians.  The course will also introduce students to urgent climate topics, environmental health issues, and emerging planetary health solutions in the community, with a particular focus on how these issues impact individuals in North Carolina.

Program Structure and Highlights

The Planetary Health Scholarly Concentration has elements throughout the entire TEC Curriculum.

ALL PHASES:

Students will be expected to participate in the following longitudinal experiences:

  • Attendance at 6 planetary health didactics per year, including but not limited to informal monthly gatherings of scholarly concentration students; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) education seminars (e.g., workshops to develop sustainability skills); meetings of Carolina Advocates for Climate, Health and Equity (CACHE); and opportunities presented by local Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) leadership.  These gatherings will be opportunities for students to:
    • Learn about broad planetary health topics and engage in active discussion about brainstorming solutions.
    • Be part of a community with other Scholarly Concentration students and faculty who are passionate about planetary health, combatting the climate crisis, and human health in a broader context.
    • Meet with the Planetary Health Scholarly Concentration program director (who may not necessarily be their personal project mentor) about their project.
  • Participate in ONE of the following activities:
    • Teaching.  Students will be able to apply the skills they have learned and gain experience teaching in a formal setting.  These experiences may include, but not be limited to the following: a TA for an undergraduate class focused on the environment, a guest instructor in OMED TBD [Planetary Health and Human Medicine elective], or a guest presenter in a CLEAN or CACHE meeting.  Note that these teaching experiences must be preceded by a planning session with leadership from either group and followed by personal reflection and a debrief with a faculty member or program leadership.
    • Educational leadership.  Students are expected to participate in educational leadership through research, by serving as a CLEAN representative, participating in CLEAN activities (waste audits, Planetary Health Report Card, etc.), by providing leadership in SHAC’s nutrition department or in another environmentally related capacity with SHAC, by serving on UNC SOM curriculum task forces, or by demonstrating some other form of climate-related entrepreneurship or innovation during their medical school tenure.

Foundation Phase:

Students will be required to complete the following:

  • Elective OMED TBD (Planetary Health and Human Medicine, 3 credit hours, spring of MS1 year)

Application Phase:

See description of ALL PHASES above.  Flexibility will be granted to students in Application Phase.

Individualization Phase:

Students will be required to do the following:

  • Complete an independent study and/or research project on a healthcare-related sustainability project proposal.  This project may be distributed over the 14 months of the Individualization Phase or condensed within a 4-week elective block under the supervision of a faculty member.  Some students will begin their projects well before the Individualization Phase.  The project will culminate in a e-poster and oral presentation to other Scholarly Concentration Program students.  Ideally, the project will also be submitted to an academic journal/society as an abstract for a poster presentation or oral presentation at a regional or national meeting (or possibly for publication).
  • Assemble a portfolio of their work in the concentration.  The portfolio could include items such as completed modules, awarded certifications, attended workshops, or curriculum products.  Additionally, students will compile a report of their scholarly project, including a reflection on their experiences, others’ evaluations of the student’s participation, journal entries, and summaries of any presentations given.