Medical Students in Alberta Organize to Promote Environmental Health: University of Alberta Medical Students’ Association

Dec
04
2024
University of Alberta Medical Students’ Association

Students Leading the Way on Environmental Health

Written by Weilin Qiu, Senior Environmental & Sustainability Representative, Medical Student's Association

The University of Alberta Medical Students’ Association (MSA) is a member of the Alberta Health Professionals for the Environment. The MSA is dedicated to advancing sustainability and environmental awareness in medical education. In 2024, we launched a new Planetary Health elective—a course designed to equip students with the skills needed for climate-conscious healthcare. The course covers topics such as the health impacts of climate change, sustainable healthcare systems, climate justice, and biodiversity, and empowers students to tackle environmental health challenges. The MSA also collaborates with the University Office of Sustainability, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), and the Canadian Federation of Medical Students HEART Task Force to promote sustainable practices and increase awareness of climate change’s health effects across our campus and curriculum. Each year, we complete a Planetary Health Report Card to assess our school’s commitment to planetary health and environmental sustainability, identifying areas for improvement and growth. 

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Truth & Reconciliation at AEN

Learn more about our process and progress, and share your thoughts with us, on our Decolonization and Indigenization page.

It is our understanding at the Alberta Environmental Network that Reconciliation starts with the land, and there is no Reconciliation until we have faced the Truth. While Truth is held collectively, we recognize everyone is on their own learning journey, at their own pace. Our work at AEN focuses on the lands outlined by the Province of Alberta, lands with which we are learning to be in kinship relationship, in the nêhiyaw (Cree) spirit of treaty-making. The lands we work for are described in Treaties 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10. The traditional keepers of this land are Anishinabe, Nêhiyawak (Cree), Dené, Dane-zaa, Nakota, Îyârhe Nakoda (Stoney Nakoda), Tsuut’ina, and Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot Confederacy); this land is also the homeland of the Métis. We are committed to building meaningful reciprocal relationships, to be of service particularly to those directly experiencing the effects of oppression, genocide, and exploitation.