Interested in what you can do to protect the local and global environment? While IPPNW (NZ) does not have official positions on specific non-nuclear environmental issues, this section has been included for those doctors with such interests.
Advocacy to protect the local environment: Consider joining and supporting a group with a special interest in the New Zealand environment (examples include Forest & Bird, ECO, Friends of the Earth, and Federated Mountain Clubs). The key New Zealand issues probably relate to conserving wildlife habitat, the control of introduced pest species and reducing the country's high per capita greenhouse gas production.
Advocacy to protect the global environment: Consider joining and supporting an international environmental group (examples with NZ branches include Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, and the World-Wide Fund for Nature).
Support for tobacco control: In addition to its adverse health effects, tobacco production and use has many adverse environmental effects including deforestation (largely for firewood for tobacco curing), use of pesticides, forest fires caused by discarded cigarettes and litter generated from packaging and discarded cigarette remains. Doctors are in an excellent position to support smoking cessation by patients and also to advocate for tougher tobacco control measures such as stronger smokefree environment legislation and higher tobacco taxes.
Support for family planning: The global population problem threatens both the environment and regional security (including the South Pacific & South East Asia). Doctors are usually in a good position to provide family planning information for their patients and also to advocate for better sex education, better access to family planning services and lower cost contraceptives. Consider becoming a member and supporter of the NZ Family Planning Association.
Make your lifestyle more sustainable: Consider eating lower on the food chain - ie, more vegetables and less meat (it's healthier, requires less land, uses less energy and is associated with less water pollution). Holidays that involve walking and cycling are less energy-intensive than those that involve touring by car. Also, consider minimising overseas jet travel by having more of your holidays in New Zealand rather than overseas. With so many high quality medical journals now on the Internet for free (eg, the BMJ) - consider reviewing your subscriptions to hard copy journals.
Geist HJ. Global assessment of deforestation related to tobacco farming. Tob Control 1999; 8: 18-28.
Gray M, Keeble B. Greening the NHS: a plan to make the NHS more environmentally friendly. BMJ 1989; 299: 4-5.
Hales S, Salmond C, Town GI, et al. Daily mortality in relation to weather and air pollution in Christchurch, New Zealand. Aust N Z J Public Health 2000; 24: 89-91.
Hales S, Weinstein P, Woodward A. Public health impacts of global climate change. Rev Environ Health 1997; 12: 191-9.
Head S. A guide to GMT (Green Medical Transport). BMJ 1989; 299: 1621-2.
Kaiser J. Ecologists on a mission to save the world. Science 2000; 287: 1188-1192.
McCully M. Next steps after Rio +5: A physician briefing on health and the environment. Medicine Global Survival 1998; 5: 35-41.
McCally M (ed). Life Support: The environment and human health. Massachusetts: MIT Press, 2002.
Pimentel D, Westra L, Noss RF (eds). Ecological Integrity: Integrating environment, conservation and health. Washington DC: Island Press, 2000.
McMichael AJ. Planetary overload. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
Ministry for the Environment. Going green, your easy guide to an environmentally friendly office. Wellington: Ministry for the Environment, 1992.
Novotny TE, Zhao F. Consumption and production waste: another externality of tobacco use. Tob Control 1999; 8: 75-80.
Rifkin J. Beyond Beef: The rise and fall of the cattle culture. London: Thorsons, 1992.
Woodward A. Doctoring the planet: health effects of global climate change. Aust NZ J Med 1995; 25: 46-53.
IPPNW (NZ) PO Box 1702 Wellington, New Zealand. Email:
nwilson@actrix.gen.nz