Best Choice for Health Is Best Choice for the Planet

The topics food, agriculture, environment and health must be approached under consideration of their causal effects and interactions in order to create a sustainable and viable food system, said presenters at the plenary session on Environmental Change & Healthy3 Initiative. White papers such as ‘The Food System: a prism of present and future challenges for health promotion and sustainable development’ must offer more practical solutions to deal with conflicts and infrastructure problems, and farmers and industrial executives must participate in the discussions, the panelists urged. 
Climate changes, such as the glacier meltdown, multiply existing trends, said Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and these effects happen over period of years, and not over decades. Most environmental change has inequitable effects: More than 90% of deaths related to natural disasters occur in developing countries. The effects of water stress, droughts and storms are the most severe in the poorest regions of the world, where they not only affect people’s well-being and the security of settlements, but also hamper access to food and resources, Pachauri said.

"The dominant path to industrialization is accompanied by high concurrent greenhouse gas emissions and damaging impacts on ecosystem and human well-being,’’ Pachauri said. "It is essential that we bring externalities out into the open. It would be a terrible mistake of developing countries to pursue the path of the developed countries.

’’We need to look at and replicate models that work and include the private sector in our discussions, agreed Olivier Reynaud, director Global and Health Care Sector for the World Economic Forum who stressed that he does not represent the private sector but a forum for dialogue. ``In a partnership, you don’t cook and then invite guest to eat; a partnership means you cook with your guest,’’ Reynaud said.

In Africa, most countries need, above all, an operational food system, said Mary Amuyunzu-Nyamongo, executive director & co-founder of the African Institute for Health and Development in Kenya. The challenge is that violent conflicts, environmental disasters and disease often have immediate fallout. Poor people are the first to suffer during conflict if they are on the wrong side in political divide, where access to food is used as a political tool.

"What is the significance of sustainability in the context of such fragility?’’ Amuyunzu-Nyamongo asked. "How do we incorporate empowerment and engage in activities to enable people to claim food and rights, if we’re still struggling with problems in our infrastructure?’’

One of the issues raised by the white paper is the consumption of meat and dairy products, which has the largest impact on global warming. In Africa, eating meat is part of the culture, and the communities will need viable alternatives. Still, a healthier diet with lower meat consumption would not only save millions of lives each year, it would also protect the environment, said Ilona Kickbusch, author of the white paper, adding that "in many cases, the best choice for health is also the best choice for the planet, and the most ethical and environmental choice is also good for health.’’