Sustainability and Health

The goal of this course is to introduce students to the ways in which sustainable development (sustainability) is intertwined with theories of health and health promotion. This course will help students to develop an understanding of the iterative nature of human and environmental health. This includes understanding of the history and theories of sustainable development, as well as interrogation of the relationship between those theories and theories of Social – Ecological Determinants of Health and Planetary Health. It includes specific examination of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals and the ways in which each of those goals relates to various social and ecological health determinants. A key component of this course is reflection on the ways in which sustainability theory and health determinants theory can be mutually supportive in working towards social-ecological health and justice.