PLANETARY HEALTH:

Protecting & Sustaining
the Well-Being of Our EcosystemS


March 22 (6 pm) - 23 (full day), 2024

Trinity Western University, Langley, BC, CANADA

Co-hosted: School of Nursing & Faculty of Natural & Applied Sciences

The main conference sessions will be in TWU's DeVries Centre

The main sessions will be live-streamed and breakout sessions will be recorded


Trinity Western University, Langley campus is located on the traditional ancestral unceded territory of the Stó:lo people.

Planetary health is a solution-oriented transdisciplinary field and social movement for addressing the impacts of human disruptions to the Earth’s natural systems on human health and all life on earth. In the 21st century, the top triple planetary threats are climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. To address these ecological challenges requires closer examination by varying worldviews such as Indigenous ways of knowing, spirituality, faith traditions, holistic practices, and global ethics.

We welcome diverse topics that explore the interconnectivity for the health of our planet. This conference will be of interest to interdisciplinary scholars, graduate, and undergraduate students. Abstract submissions closed.

Keynote Speakers

Teddie Potter, PhD, RN, FAAN, FNAP

Clinical Professor & Director of Planetary Health
University of Minnesota

Dr. Potter is deeply committed to climate change and planetary health education including membership in the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, and membership on the American Academy of Nursing Environment and Public Health Expert Panel. She is a member of the Coordinating Committee of Columbia University’s Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education and a Fellow in the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota. She chairs Clinicians for Planetary Health (C4PH) and is a member of the Steering Committee of the Planetary Health Alliance. She currently serves on the National Academy of Medicine’s Action Collaborative on Decarbonizing the US Health Sector, the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies, and the newly launched Climate Crossroads committee of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine. Dr. Potter is the inaugural director of the Center for Planetary Health and Environmental Justice at the School of Nursing University of Minnesota.

Jessica Moerman, PhD

President & CEO
The Evangelical Environmental Network

Jessica Moerman is a climate and environmental scientist, pastor, educator, and advocate. She is President and CEO at the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN). Jessica is also co-founding pastor at Grace Capital City church, which she planted in 2016 with her husband Chris in Washington, DC.

Prior to joining EEN, Jessica was a AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy. She received her PhD in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from the Georgia Institute of Technology and has held research positions at John Hopkins University, University of Michigan, and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, where she researched how climate has changed throughout Earth’s history.

Jessica regularly speaks on issues related to climate change, pollution, children's health, the clean energy transition, environmental stewardship, and the intersection of science and faith. She has appeared on national media outlets, including the NBC TODAY Show, Good Morning America, and the Christian Broadcasting Network.

Rev. Mitch Hescox

Climate Solutions Consultant
President Emeritus
The Evangelical Environmental Network

The Rev. Mitchell C. Hescox serves as a climate and energy policy consultant and is the President Emeritus of The Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN), where he led the EEN team for fifteen (15) years. 

Rev. Hescox co-authored Caring for Creation: The Evangelical Guide To Climate Change and a Healthy Environment (Bethany House) with nationally known meteorologist Paul Douglas, contributed to Sacred Acts: How Churches are Working Together to Protect Earth’s Climate (New Society Publishers), Health of People, Health of Planet, Our Responsibility (Springer Publishing), and Loving The Least of These (National Association of Evangelicals). He has testified before Congress, spoken at the White House, and presented at the Vatican and The Council for Foreign Relations. Rev. Hescox has appeared on CNN, NPR, PRI, MSNBC, BBC, and numerous radio programs, both Christian and secular. 

Rev. Hescox and EEN have been widely recognized for their advocacy for the Mercury and Air Toxics Standard (MATS), Land Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), Growing Climate Solutions Act, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, The Inflation Reduction Act, Methane Leakage Reductions Standards among others. 

Rev. Hescox is a member of the National Association of Evangelicals, a past member of the NAE Board of Directors, a past member of EPA’s Clean Air Act Advisory Committee, The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Citizen Advisory Council, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Commission on Accelerating Climate Action. 

Before joining EEN, Mitch pastored a local church for 18 years, and before the call to ordained ministry served the coal and utility industry as Director, Fuel Systems for Allis Mineral Systems (York, PA). He is married to Clare and has four grown children and eight grandchildren.

important Dates

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