Hello ONEIG!
We hope you have been keeping well through rough times. We are here now to let you know about a couple upcoming events and to keep you informed and involved!
Events
World Water Day Collaborative event!
Sunday, 27 March, 2022 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Region 6, ONEIG, and Beth Emeth Bais Yehuda have come together to present Kim Wheatley, Anishinaabekwe Leader, and Rob Samulack, RNAO member and climate advocate, for a World Water Day event to remember!
Register at https://www.beby.org/event/march27
Quarterly meeting
Wednesday, March 23rd, 2022, 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Join us to discuss what ONEIG has been doing, what's next and how you can help! This focus will be on the provincial election coming up at the beginning of June 2022. We will talk about RNAO's platform items focused on the Environmental Determinants of Health and hope to bring in a guest speaker to talk about other key environmental issues for the election! (Stay tuned on social media!)
Missed our January Skillshare? Last month’s skillshare on clothing repair (organized by social media executive Kelsey Lothian and presented by chair Josalyn Radcliffe) is now on our Youtube channel
News
IPCC report just released
This report contains updated evidence that we are running out of time to avoid the worst of climate change and the effects of climate change are worse than expected. Here are a few snippets from a Guardian article on the release:
The best way to give effective and lasting protection from climate chaos is through action that addresses “inequities such as those based on gender, ethnicity, disability, age, location and income.
The good news is that a liveable future remains within grasp – just. But the window of opportunity for action is “brief and rapidly closing”. The response from UN secretary-general António Guterres was stark: “Delay is death.”
Climate grief or eco-anxiety is something many of us struggle with. Connecting with ONEIG, a group that cares deeply about the future of both people and our planet, might help. There are other options to help you keep walking forward, this article summarizes a few: additional resources.
Ways to Move Forward
Natural reforestation has been shown to boost climate mitigation. Read more about the powers of nature to help us all and address multiple converging crises (biodiversity and climate change among them). Read more here.
RNAO’s Election Platform Released!
Two buckets focused on the environment: 1 on climate, 1 on water!
ONEIG was there! Check out the RNAO Twitter feed to catch up on Queen’s Park Day and participation by our ONEIG chair in the panel at the end of the day!
Environmental Racism
Last month was Black history month. Environmental racism is evident in the ways that Black, Indigenous, and other racialized communities bear a greater burden of the impacts of environmental degradation. Keep an eye out for news on a federal bill on environmental racism and ongoing projects bringing awareness and environmental justice.
On this note, the RNAO is facing anti-Black racism in our profession and have a webinar series continuing in March and April.
Action on Waste:
See below this email for details on an important survey re: reusable PPE from Linda Varangu of the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care. Filling out this survey contributes to a project to help reduce the impact of PPE and build a more circular economy.
Hope to see you at events coming up! Where possible, they will be recorded and put on our youtube channel. No matter how involved you can be, we know you’re out there and sending you well wishes for rest, courage, and hope.
All the best,
Your ONEIG team
Twitter: @oneigRNAO
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ONEIGrnao/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oneigrnao/?hl=en
Survey details:
The Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care (CCGHC) is inviting all Canadian health care workers who use reusable PPE to take part in a short 5 minute online survey as part of a project that the CCGHC is undertaking entitled, Reducing Health Care-Related PPE and Medical Single Use Plastic Waste Through Circular Economy Principles. This project is funded by Environment and Climate Change Canada.
The objective of this confidential survey is to hear from health care workers' on their experiences and opinions on the comfort, safety and satisfaction of reusable PPE, in particular: reusable gowns, reusable elastomeric respirators, goggles, and face shields. The results of this survey will help inform recommendations on developing a reusable PPE health system in Canada.
We are asking you to share this survey with your members and colleagues who have used reusable PPE and encourage their participation.
The survey can be accessed here: Survey on Reusable PPE and will be available until March 11th, 2022.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact myself or Ozora, our PPE project coordinator at ozora@greenhealthcare.ca