Measuring healthcare's environmental impacts
The shift to climate resilient and sustainable health systems requires accurate assessment of healthcare’s environmental impacts.
CASCADES Contact
Community of Practice
In partnership with the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care, 
we support the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimation in Canadian Healthcare Organizations Community of Practice. This network is made up of experts working in the healthcare system in facilities and/or energy management roles. Topics of interest include technical/methodological aspects of estimating greenhouse gas emissions as well as actions to support reducing greenhouse gas emissions in healthcare organizations. Opportunities to connect actions to climate change adaptation and resilience are also in scope.
An Advisory Group provides input and guidance on the goals and direction for the Community of Practice:
- Kate Butler, Executive Director Energy Management, Health Services, Service New Brunswick
- Amanda McKenzie, Manager, Environmental Sustainability
Interior Health - Michael Kurz, Team Lead, Energy and Innovation, University Health Network
- Jérôme Ribesse, Associate Director, Synergie Santé Environnement
- Linda Varangu, Senior Advisor, Climate Change, Canadian
Coalition for Green Healthcare
Implementation resources for environmental impact measurement strategies
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimation in Canadian Healthcare
Report: Greenhouse gas emissions estimation in Canadian healthcare systems
An overview of how greenhouse gas emissions are estimated in healthcare and information on the current state of emissions estimation in healthcare organizations across Canada.
Report on proceedings: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimates in Healthcare (Workshop of February 8, 2024): What we heard and opportunities for future work
This report was developed by CASCADES in collaboration with the Canadian Medical Association
Virtual Care Carbon Accounting
A step-by-step guide on carbon accounting in virtual care.
HealthcareLCA
HealthcareLCA is a global living database of healthcare-related environmental impact assessments.
GHG Emissions Estimations
Specific tools for carbon accounting across healthcare settings.
Organization Level
Specialty Tools
Clinical & Practice Tools (UK)
We want to hear from you
Materials created by CASCADES are shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Public License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
While it is not a requirement under the license, we would be grateful if you would let us know where and how you use, share or adapt our materials.
Other action areas
Care pathways
Key actions can minimize the environmental harms of medications throughout their lifecycle and address increased medication-related risks due to climate change.
Many opportunities exist to address the resource intensity of perioperative care while ensuring and promoting high quality care.
Comprehensive person-centered primary and community care can support health and wellbeing and reduce the need for more resource intensive services.
Practitioners across specialties can take meaningful steps to reduce the environmental impacts of their practice and safeguard patient and population health.
Health services can promote health, including by delivering healthy food, effective chronic disease management, and climate-adapted clinical care.
System enablers
Sustainability is intrinsically linked with both quality care and patient safety and can be embedded within these efforts.
Leadership and good governance are needed to develop and deliver effective climate and sustainability strategy.
The shift to climate resilient and sustainable health systems requires accurate assessment of healthcare’s environmental impacts.
Health systems can leverage their purchasing power to influence vendors and shape markets for sustainable and resilient health sector products and services.
Healthy food, digital innovation and effective waste management are among the key enablers of low-carbon, sustainable and climate-resilient health systems.