For many healthcare professionals it feels contradictory: healthcare heals people, yet it harms the planet. Seven percent of the total carbon footprint of the Netherlands is related to the healthcare sector. A single operation produces an average of 12 kilos of waste. To make the sector more sustainable, a drastic transition is needed. In this Thesis Lab, you will contribute to that transition together with frontrunners in the healthcare sector.
Healthcare professionals – such as doctors and nurses – play a crucial role in making healthcare more sustainable. They are closely involved in the client’s care process and are the first to see the impact of climate change on health. They can contribute to mitigation, for example by working in a circular way, as well as to adaptation, by preparing clients for the health effects of climate change. In recent years, more and more healthcare professionals have become aware of the sector’s significant environmental impact and of climate change’s effects on their patients. Now that sustainable thinking and planetary health have gained attention, it is time for the next step: action!
In the past five years, we have built a thriving community of sustainable healthcare professionals, students, and researchers. In the sixth edition of this Thesis Lab, we align with the KNAW’s (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts & Sciences) research agenda on Planetary Health and will work together on:
- The effects of environmental change on public health.
- Development and implementation of effective mitigation and adaptation measures for healthcare. Think of implementing circular or CO2 reducing strategies (mitigation) or preparing clients for extreme heat (adaptation).
- Behavioural change in relation to preventing environmental degradation.
This Thesis Lab serves as a platform to stimulate collaboration within the healthcare sector. You will carry out your own graduation project in partnership with one of our knowledge partners. In addition, between January and July 2027, you will take part in a bi-weekly series of 12 mandatory in‑depth sessions. Together with other students and frontrunners in the healthcare sector, you will develop multidisciplinary insights that accelerate the transition toward sustainable healthcare.
The graduation projects require a wide range of disciplines, such as industrial design, environmental sciences, healthcare management, technical) medicine, nursing, law, supply chain management, business studies, social studies and biomedical sciences.
Challenge
How can the Dutch healthcare sector contribute to planetary health?
Caseholder
This Thesis Lab is a collaboration between healthcare organizations in South Holland and is coordinated by Medical Delta. Medical Delta is a transdisciplinary partnership of more than 1,000 participants from Erasmus University, Erasmus MC, TU Delft, LUMC, Leiden University and four universities of applied sciences in South Holland. Together with companies, healthcare institutions and governments, Medical Delta works on innovative solutions for sustainable healthcare.
Knowledge partners
More information about the knowledge partners will follow soon.
Previous labs
Curious about the results from previous years? Take a look at the website!
Related articles (in Dutch)
Adviesrapport KNAW ‘Planetary Health’
Position paper ‘Planetaire Gezondheid’ GGD-GHOR
Verslag Medical Delta Café en Round Table Thesis Lab Groene Zorg
Groene Zorg 2024-2025: Resultaten