Event highlights
Participants discussed the promotion of health and well-being through informed decision-making on the local planning and management of green and blue spaces, as well as through the development of a shared understanding of the impacts of the natural environment on human health, including mental health.
Event notice
8 December 2021
The WHO European Centre for Environment and Health, under the auspices of the Environment and Health Process, is holding the second of a series of high-level Bonn Dialogues on Environment and Health.
The Bonn Dialogues are meant to provide the European Environment and Health Task Force (EHTF) with evidence and reflection points to support the identification of priorities and the formulation of possible commitments to be put forward by the 53 Member States of the WHO European Region at the 7th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health, expected to be held in 2023.
The second Bonn Dialogues on Environment and Health, virtually hosted by Lithuania, is focused on nature, biodiversity and health. This topic is regarded as a rapidly emerging area of work, the interest for which has significantly and swiftly increased in recent years. This is in part due to the COVID-19 crisis, which has brought to the fore the complex relations between human health and the natural environment.
The Dialogue also aims to give new impetus to the promotion of health and well-being through informed decisions on the local planning and management of green and blue spaces.
The main objectives of this Dialogue are:
- to take stock of the latest evidence and to develop a shared understanding of the impacts of the natural environment on human health, including mental health;
- to exchange views on policy opportunities, emerging approaches and good practices to design and implement policies that promote health through investments into the protection of nature and biodiversity;
- to highlight tools in support of policy-making.
The event is open to all EHTF members, who are nominated representatives of ministries of health and environment and of relevant stakeholders, as well as other interested individuals, including researchers, educators, students, policy advocates and managers, and members of civil society and the general public.