Welcome
Welcome to the website for the Climate Leadership & Environmental Action Network at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine (CLEAN UNC).
We are an organization founded and led by UNC medical students who recognize that climate change and other environmental crises pose an urgent, growing threat to human and planetary health, as well as social justice.
As physicians in training, we believe that we have a duty to our patients to educate ourselves and others about these issues, and to take action to protect health and find solutions to these challenges.
Our organization has three primary goals:
- Work with educators in medicine, allied health, and related fields to include clinically-relevant environmental topics in curricula so that future clinicians have the core competencies, knowledge, and skills they need to care for patients and communities in the era of climate change
- Improve health system sustainability by working with leaders to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other waste streams, helping the health system “do no harm” to the environment or communities it serves
- Mobilize students, educators, and community allies to advocate for intersectional environmental justice, health equity, and policy solutions
We welcome medical and other health professions students, house staff, educators, other UNC community members, and collaborators outside UNC to work with us. If you are interested in joining CLEAN or collaborating in some way, please visit the “Contact Us” page. We look forward to hearing from you!