UOC to form part of the Secretariat of the Planetary Health Alliance from 2026

The UOC is to form part of the Secretariat of the Planetary Health Alliance (PHA), coordinated by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), from 2026 to 2028, as officially announced during the organization's annual meeting held in Rotterdam from 7 to 10 October. The PHA brings together more than 500 organizations from over 80 countries committed to understanding and addressing climate change and its impacts on health.

The Secretariat's functions will be carried out through a collaborative cluster integrating science, education, public policy and healthcare, consisting of:

●      The Centre for Planetary Health Development (CDSP), a joint initiative of ISGlobal and the Mollet Health Foundation (FSM).

●      The Mollet Health Foundation (FSM), recognized for its track record in environmental sustainability.

●      The Advisory Council for Sustainable Development (CADS) of Catalonia, which connects planetary health with public policy.

●      The Official College of Physicians of Barcelona (COMB), which engages medical professionals in the planetary health movement.

●      The Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), which together with ISGlobal and Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) runs a master's degree programme on planetary health.

In recent years, these institutions have worked closely to promote and strengthen planetary health in Catalonia.

"We see the Secretariat as an opportunity to reinforce collaboration among existing actors and initiatives, help connect ongoing projects, and contribute to a more coherent, visible and inclusive European planetary health movement," said Josep Maria Antó, Research Professor at ISGlobal.

The European Secretariat of the PHA will be managed by the Centre for Planetary Health Development, based at the Mollet Hospital, Barcelona, and serve as the cluster's technical secretariat. The centre will promote synergies among European partners and drive projects connecting research with transformative action in planetary health.

The UOC's commitment to planetary health

The UOC has been a member of the PHA since 2022. The mission of this international network of more than 300 universities, research centres, NGOs and government institutions from around the world is to promote a liveable, sustainable future for humanity and the rest of life on Earth, and to regenerate the planet's natural systems.

Joining the alliance and now forming part of the European Secretariat represents further progress in the university's commitment to tackling the global challenges of the 2030 Agenda, including the climate crisis. The UOC jointly runs, with ISGlobal and Pompeu Fabra University, a Master's Degree in Planetary Health and conducts research in the field from its Barcelona InTerdisciplinary research group on plAnetary heaLth (BITAL). Cristina O'Callaghan Gordo, director of the master's degree and leader of the research group, believes that forming part of the Secretariat will help contribute to driving projects that examine the interdependency of human and planetary health. "It means we can use our knowledge for a fairer, more sustainable future, and we can strengthen a network to work to transform how we understand human health on a global scale. Our role at the UOC can be key to promoting education and helping professionals from different fields take on this vision in their practices and professions in Europe."

One of the projects led by the university in this field is Catalysing Transformative Change in Planetary Health Education (CATA-Earth). This Erasmus+ project supported and funded by the European Union has been running since 2024. It involves six universities from the Netherlands, Spain, Bangladesh and Indonesia, alongside four local organizations in the Asia-Pacific region. The aim is to increase the capacity to design and put into practice innovative education on planetary health that is co-created with the communities in regions at risk from climate change in Asia. It also aims to develop a new generation of professionals with knowledge and skills in planetary health.

Next January will see the start of the Capacity-building for Higher Education to Accelerate Next-Generation Education in Planetary Health (Change-PH) project. This Erasmus+ project will also receive funding from the European Union and aims to develop certified courses that take into account the priorities of the local communities in the Philippines and Nepal.