MEDIA STATEMENT
13 March 2019

Health professionals are pledging their support for school students around New Zealand who will be striking this Friday to call for meaningful action on climate change.

“As health professionals we know that climate change is already affecting the wellbeing of children and young people,” says Dr Alex Macmillan, Co-convenor of OraTaiao: The NZ Climate and Health Council.

“For as long as adults in leadership and government fail to act adequately to prevent the worst impacts of climate change, we will support school students to strike in protection of their own futures.”

Striking at the heart of the issue. Dr Alex Macmillan. Otago Daily Times, 11 March 2019.

Children are going on strike over their health and wellbeing while schools are still burning coal. More here.

OraTaiao submission, 5 March 2019

'Climate change is increasingly recognised as the biggest global health threat of the 21st Century, as well as the greatest opportunity to improve health. As senior doctors, nurses and other health professionals, we are advocating on behalf of our patients and communities. One of our strategic priorities is to: “Demonstrate leadership in achieving a climate-resilient net zero emissions health sector”.'

'Procurement contracts are a powerful tool to leverage action on climate change and as New Zealand is a signatory to the Paris Agreement, the success of New Zealand’s obligations will hinge on precisely such measures as government procurement rules.'

Read the submission here (PDF).

Wellington, 16 February 2019, 9am-3.30pm
We are holding our 2-yearly Strategic Planning Meeting at the medical school in Wellington on Saturday 16 February. All members are welcome to attend and provide input. We will use the day to develop OraTaiao’s strategic direction and priorities for the next two years (2019-2021). As well as that, it is a great (and relatively rare) chance to catch up face-to-face. We will begin with morning tea at 9am for a 9.30am start. Members please check your emails for details of how to join in person or by video/teleconference.

MEDIA STATEMENT
18 January 2018

New Zealand health professionals are applauding a landmark report that outlines how to achieve healthy and sustainable eating patterns for a future global population of 10 billion people.

The report was produced by the EAT-Lancet Commission on Food, Planet, Health – a partnership between a global non-profit group and one of the world’s leading medical journals. It is the product of three years of work by 37 international experts working across a range of scientific disciplines.

Article on how Māori communities are facing up to threats of coastal erosion and flooding as a result of climate change, with comments from Dr Rhys Jones, OraTaiao Co-convenor. Read here.

Article on the Lancet Countdown 2018 report with quotes from Co-convenor Dr Rhys Jones. Read here.

MEDIA STATEMENT
29 November 2018

A newly released report highlights that climate change poses an unacceptably high level of risk for the health of populations around the world.

The 2018 Lancet Countdown report, released today ahead of the international climate change negotiations, was jointly authored by leading doctors, academics and policy professionals from 27 organisations. It tracks the implementation of the Paris Agreement and the associated health threats and opportunities.

“The report shows that our lack of progress threatens both human lives and the viability of national health systems they depend on,” says Dr Rhys Jones, Co-convenor of OraTaiao: The NZ Climate and Health Council.

Article on State of Public Health lecture given by Co-convenors Dr Alexandra Macmillan and Dr Rhys Jones. Read here.