DISCLAIMER

This is an educational resource developed by the NHS Sustainable Development Unit (www.sdu.nhs.uk) for NHS organisation’s General

Staff Awareness Sessions.

This is not to be used by other than NHS staff; and should not be used in any way in a commercial setting.

It was produced in August 2010 and revised in May 2011. Please note that the SDU cannot continue to revise the resource after this

date.

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Saving Lives, Saving Money,

Securing the Future

Sustainability, health and the NHS

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1. What is sustainability?2. Why is it important?3. What can I do to make a difference -

at home and at work?

Today we will be exploring…

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“Meeting our needs today without compromising the ability of others to meet their needs tomorrow…”

What is Sustainability?

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5Barbier, 1987

Sustainability – Striking the Balance

Did you know?

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If everyone on the planet had the same wasteful lifestyles and used as much energy

as we do in the UK we would need THREE EARTHS to provide enough resources. We

are living way beyond our means

What can I do?

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When you left your house this morning did you leave the taps running and the lights and TV on?

Turn it off!

If every Trust cut their energy bill by 5% the NHS in England would save

around £20 million per year.

Why is sustainability important…?

1) It improves Health

2) It saves Money

3) The NHS can Make a Difference

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Did you know?

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The NHS has to reduce its carbon emissions by 10% by 2015 to help meet the Climate Change Act (2008) target of 80% by 2050.

How will you help deliver this?

What can I do?

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Is that face to face meeting really necessary?

Reduce travel!

If teleconferencing replaced 5% of business miles travelled, the NHS (England) would save

over £13.9 million each year

Health

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Although climate change can cause illness and death directly...

…there are MUCH greater health risks through…

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Health

Health co-benefits: What is good for health is good for the environment…

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Health

Did you know?

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The Government’s Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) scheme requires many NHS organisations to participate in an “energy league”. Good performers will do well in the league table

and the CRC will cost them less money than poor performers.

Saving carbon will save the Trust money that can be reinvested in delivering services!

NHS carbon footprint1

travel

17%

Building energy use 24%Procurement

59%

1 England. NHS Sustainable Development Unit 2010 15

21 million tonnes CO2e

What can I do?

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Think about everything you use in your job and the amount of things you throw away: which of them could be used better,

reused or recycled?

Reduce, reuse and recycle!

The NHS spends £20 billion every year on buying goods and services

1) 21 million tonnes of CO2e is the same as some medium

sized countries (e.g. Estonia and Slovenia) TRUE

2) The biggest chunk of procurement emissions is the manufacture of medical devices FALSE

3) The NHS is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in Europe TRUE

4) 1 in 20 journeys on UK roads are health related TRUE

Can we make a difference? True or False?

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Others have been there before you….

When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills

(Chinese proverb)

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You may like to include slides with:

• Your Organisation’s sustainability statement• Who the SD Champions are in the Organisation• Who the Board level sponsor is for Sustainable Development work• Specific information and data from your Organisation (e.g. amount

Organisation spends on energy, how much water the Organisation uses etc)

• Information about staff events promoting sustainability• The key actions you want people to take in the Organisation to

help improve sustainability and reduce carbon

Making the presentation specific to your Organisation

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