‘Our power, our planet’ is the theme for this year’s Earth Day 2025, taking place on April 22. It is a global call to action focusing on renewable energy, aiming to triple the production of clean electricity by 2030. This aligns with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030 to create a world that leaves no one behind.
As The Lancet Countdown on health and climate change 2024 report highlights, health risks are soaring, and lives and livelihoods are threatened by dirty energy, leading to air pollution.
Wendy M. Purcell, a global expert in sustainability and vice chair for education in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and Justice at the Rutgers School of Public Health, explores the connections between planetary and human health. As co-chair of the Rutgers Health Climate Action Group, she launched the new Sustainability, Health, and Healthcare Certificate, with a Master’s degree program planned to broaden access to this critical area of study.
‘The Bloomsbury Handbook of Sustainability in Higher Education’, Dr. Purcell’s book, highlights the power of universities and colleges globally to drive transformational change through their education, research, and service work. By developing graduates who understand both their power to advance sustainable development and the fragility of our planet, undertaking research for sustainability solutions and their application, and working in community and civic settings, higher education has a powerful contribution to make.
Dr. Purcell is clear that “Taking up ‘our power’ for ‘our planet’ goes beyond simply cleaning up our grid. It is about understanding how the health of our planet is intimately connected to our health, both personal and in our communities, as well as the health of our society and economy.”
As series editor of a seventeen-book series on ‘Higher Education and the Sustainable Development Goals,’ Dr. Purcell is writing her book in the series on ‘Good Health and Well-Being.' It is clear that “We all have a role in safeguarding the health of people and planet now and in the future. On Earth Day – and every day – we can make smarter choices for ourselves and our world that enhance safety and efficiency while strengthening our resilience as a society and nation.”
Rutgers School of Public Health offers a suite of courses and research programs that explore the intersections of planetary and human health. The school’s courses on Sustainability (ENOH 0621) and Climate Change (ENOH 0620) launched in Fall 2024. Additionally, the 2025-2026 academic year sees the launch of the courses Sustainability of Health and Healthcare (ENOH 0622), Communicating Sustainability (ENOH 0623), and Sustainability Leadership (ENOH 0625).
Join Earth Day efforts and take action – educate, advocate, mobilize, and pledge. You can take ten easy actions to make a difference on Earth Day and beyond.
