From increasingly severe weather hazards to more extreme heat, climate change poses many risks to people's health.
As a result, hospitals dedicated to improving and protecting people's health are working to limit their impact on the problem.
Stoddard: “More than any other industry, health care is truly on the front lines of climate change. When climate-related emergencies occur, the health care sector is responding.
John Stoddard works for the nonprofit organization Harmless Healthcare.
His team is helping hospitals sign the Coolfood Pledge, pledging to reduce carbon pollution in their food supply chains by a quarter by 2030.
To achieve this, hospitals are switching some meat and dairy products to dishes based on fruits, vegetables and grains. Plant-based foods are generally healthier, and producing them emits far less carbon pollution.
By 2022, some 20 hospitals that have signed the pledge have reduced carbon pollution per plate by 21%.
Stoddard: “Their patient satisfaction is not misery. Overall it's a success.”
Now, more than 100 hospitals and medical centers have joined the Coolfood Pledge to help keep patients and the planet healthy.
Reporting credit: Ethan Friedman/ChavoBart Digital Media
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