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May 31, 2024
Get to Know the SHE Center Teams
Meet Chelsea Rowley, MLIS
Chelsea works in the Institute for Health & Equity as a program coordinator and has been a part of supporting the SHE Center since its foundation. Chelsea is a naturally curious person and is passionate about conservation and preservation in all shapes, sizes, and forms. She previously worked as an archivist and a museum education coordinator, so finding and learning new ways to implement conservation and preservation fascinates her, especially when it comes to the betterment of the planet as a whole.
In her spare time, Chelsea enjoys spending time with her family, gardening, running, reading, and listening to podcasts.
News & Updates
SHE Center “Climate Med Ed Scholar” Program Launched
On April 15, the SHE Center’s new Climate Med Ed Scholar program officially launched! This exciting new initiative, led by Joanne Bernstein, MD, and Kellie LeGrave, Education Program Coordinator III, matched 12 medical students with a faculty leader to review existing MCWfusion curriculum and propose new educational opportunities within the space of climate change and health and environmental justice. The students and faculty are using learning objectives published by the Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education and metrics from the Planetary Heath Report Card to guide their review and proposals with the aim of preparing our future healthcare professionals for a changing climate. This work is funded through the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment.
MCW Joins NAM's "Accelerating the National Climate and Health Movement" Initiative
On May 10, MCW’s participation was confirmed in the National Academy of Medicine’s newly launched initiative, Accelerating the National Climate and Health Movement. The Initiative aims to build and sustain momentum toward decarbonizing the health sector while strengthening its sustainability and resilience. Through the initiative, the Academies will provide guidance, resources, and facilitate relationships across participant organizations to further energize the health sector towards climate action.
MCW Students, Faculty, Staff Plant First MCW Community Garden
Several members of the MCW community gathered to plant the institution’s first community garden on May 29! The garden contains tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, lettuce, zucchini, and a variety of herbs. The garden will be maintained and harvested by students and the Hub Café staff during the inaugural growing season. Would you be interested in participating in a future MCW community garden? Let us know! Share your thoughts by emailing us at SHECenter@mcw.edu.
Medical College of Wisconsin faculty, staff and students who helped create the 2024 Community Garden.
Dr. Wagner and Medical College of Wisconsin students planting the community garden.
Dr. Kerschner (upper right) with the Medical College of Wisconsin faculty, staff, and students planting vegetables for the community garden.
MCW, Froedtert, and Children’s Participate in CleanMed Meeting
Five faculty and staff representing MCW, Froedtert Hospital, and Children’s Wisconsin participated in the CleanMed annual meeting in Salt Lake City from May 21 – 23. Hosted by Practice Greenhealth and Healthcare Without Harm, CleanMed is the premier national conference for leaders in health care sustainability. It is the platform for health care leaders to convene, collaborate, and conduct societal transformation for individual, community, and planetary health. Read more on Infoscope.
MCW Community Celebrates Earth Month Through Sustainable Activities
Nearly 40 MCW faculty and staff participated in the One Healthcare EcoChallenge, a monthlong challenge created specifically for individuals at healthcare institutions to promote individual, community, and environmental health. Participants used the EcoChallenge platform to select actions to complete at work, at home, and in local communities with the goal of forming healthy and sustainable habits. Collectively, the MCW team members:
- Saved 2,384 gallons of water
- Saved 2,253 pounds of CO2
- Spent over 2,000 minutes outdoors
- Spent 1,050 minutes learning about climate change
- Recycled over 400 single-use plastics
- Consumed 118 meatless or vegan meals
- Composted nearly 15 pounds of waste
Hundreds of thousands of everyday actions add up to significant change! Congratulations to the participants for creating a positive impact within our communities and on the planet.
SHE Center Director Joins Clean Wisconsin Board
Christa Wagner, PhD, inaugural director of the MCW SHE Center, was named to the Clean Wisconsin Board of Directors this May. Clean Wisconsin is a non-profit organization with the mission to combat climate change and pollution in our air, water, and land, and ensure a healthy future for every Wisconsin community. Read more here.
Upcoming Events
Ending June 1: Urban blight as Environmental Injustice. The Milwaukee County Historical Society is showing a special exhibit on environmental injustice through June 1. Additional details are available on the exhibit website.
June 4: Bike to Work Day: Join MRMC community members for the annual bike to work day on June 4! Four leaders will lead group rides from different start locations around Milwaukee while MRMC and partners will serve coffee and donuts to participants from 7 – 9: 00 a.m. Learn more!
June 20: Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment 20th Anniversary Conference: The Advancing Health for ALL Wisconsin conference aims to seek, create, harness, and share new knowledge and practices to strengthen Wisconsin’s health ecosystem and achieve equitable health outcomes for ALL Wisconsin. Learn more and register here.
June 21: NIH Obesity Research Task Force Seminar: The NIH Obesity Research Task Force (ORTF) welcomes you the seminar “Environmental Pollution, Climate, Respiratory Disease, and Obesity – The Association between Childhood Obesity and Exposures to Environmental Chemicals” on June 21 at 12:00 p.m. CT. This seminar will explore the links between exposure to environmental chemicals, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and obesity, ranging from mechanistic and epidemiological studies through population health. Of particular interest is the impact of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, where they may be found, and how they may affect obesity in childhood. Learn more and register here.
June 25: Meeting of the AAMC Climate Action and Sustainability in Academic Medicine community on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. CT. The session will feature three experts on sustainable science and green labs discussing the opportunities to reduce energy usage and waste, promote recycling of lab materials, and foster innovation in laboratory processes. Advanced registration is required and you will need an account with aamc.org to do so. You can create a free account with your MCW email address.
July 16-17: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Climate Crossroads Summit 2024. This is a summit engaging experts, community stakeholders, and decision makers on current and emerging pathways to meet the climate crisis. Attendees can register for virtual or in-person participation here.
Funding Opportunities
Deadline November 21, 2024: Environmental Protection Agency Community Change Grant: Approximately $2 billion dollars in Inflation Reduction Act funds is available to support environmental and climate justice activities to benefit disadvantaged communities through projects that reduce pollution, increase community climate resilience, and build community capacity to address environmental and climate justice challenges. Learn more.
Resources & More
MCW is a member of several consortia and membership organizations with different resources to support engagement in climate action in academic medicine. Contact us for any assistance in signing up!
Global Consortium for Climate and Health Education (GCCHE) aims to unite health professional training institutions, health societies, and regional health organizations to create a global climate-ready health sector, prepared to mobilize and lead health promotion and response in the era of climate change, while restoring the health of the planet. Learn more and join here.
Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Climate Action Virtual Community provides meaningful connection to the myriad people in academic medical centers working across mission areas to address the climate crisis and improve institutional resiliency. Request an account using your MCW email address here. Once your account has been approved, click here to join the Climate Action and Sustainability group.
Practice Greenhealth is the health care sector’s go-to source for information, tools, data, resources, and expert technical support on sustainability initiatives that help hospitals and health systems meet their health, financial, and community goals. Learn more.
Interested in learning more about the SHE Center at an upcoming MCW departmental, institute, or center faculty and/or staff meeting? Email Dr. Wagner to schedule.
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