The 2023 UN Climate Conference – better known as COP28 - begins today, November 30th 2023. Three members of the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition (SMMSN) have been accepted as online delegates for the event. This is the first time that online delegate positions have been awarded. These colleagues will be joining the meetings online as well as the University of Aberdeen’s delegation physically in Dubai.
The three online delegates are: Deputy Lead of the MBChB programme Dr Alison Jack, Dr Laura McCrimmon who is a Public Health Registrar and Honorary Clinical Lecturer, and PhD candidate Cathrine Baungaard from the Rowett Institute.
As part of their role as online delegates, the trio will be taking over the SMMSN Twitter/X account (@AbdnLifeScience) and the Rowett Twitter/X account (@rowett_abdn) intermittently over the period of COP28. Look out for their initials on Twitter/X posts to read about their COP28 thoughts and experiences.
Meet our online delegates
Dr Alison Jack is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition, working mainly within the Medical School as Deputy Lead of the MBChB programme, as well as Lead of Year 1 Medicine. Healthcare is a great worldwide source of greenhouse gases emissions and Alison, working closely with colleagues in the NHS, has established a new teaching post dedicated to embedding education on the environmental impact of healthcare activities into the Aberdeen medicine programme. This post will educate the university’s future doctors on more sustainable medical practices and promote healthier lifestyles to reduce the need for medical intervention in the first place. By attending COP28 Alison hopes to gain insight into the global process for mitigating climate change and particularly looks forward to engaging with the days dedicated to health and education.
Dr Laura McCrimmon holds an MSc in Exercise Medicine, MBChB in Clinical Medicine and is currently studying for her Masters in Public Health as she begins her career as a Public Health Registrar. She collaborates with Aberdeen University colleagues within the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition to educate students, colleagues, and NHS staff about the impact of healthcare on planetary health and vice versa. Within her role as a Public Health registrar she is an active member of the Sustainable Development Interest Group and works alongside colleagues to influence policy makers and governmental bodies to put planetary health in policies and practices. Her passion for this subject arose from her long studentship of Yoga and Ayurveda which has always recognised the interconnectedness of human and planetary health.
Cathrine Baungaard is an associate registered nutritionist (ANutr) and second year PhD candidate at the Rowett Institute, and is funded by EASTBIO DTP. Her research focuses on the role sustainable aquatic foods have in sustainable diets. Aquatic foods are often lefts off the “plate” when it comes to sustainable diet discussions, yet they are highly nutritious and often more climate-friendly than other territorial based protein sources. Over the last few years she has followed the COP proceedings on the sidelines, always interested in the food systems and diets aspect, so she is really look forward to taking part virtually as a COP28 University of Aberdeen delegate. Throughout the 10 days, she hopes to observe several negotiations, to gain a better understanding of how the COP process works, join as many aquatic/terrestrial food systems/diet events as possible (and time zone permitted!) and disseminate her insights to the SMMSN in the new year.
Why are they participating?
Healthcare worldwide is an enormous producer of greenhouse gases and tackling this needs a two-pronged approach, both to reduce emissions at source and to promote healthier, more sustainable lifestyles, decreasing the need for healthcare activities in the first place. Cathrine, Laura and Alison are excited to be contributing to such work and will be feeding back to the School and wider audience when they “return”. In addition to the takeover days, they will be presenting their experiences at an event in the new year!
