Planetary Health Embedded Certificate
Program Overview
The Planetary Health Embedded Certificate offered by the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta is designed for undergraduate students who want to explore how global and regional environmental factors impact public health. This interdisciplinary program connects climate change, biodiversity, food security, and more, with human and animal health. The certificate helps students understand the ways our environment affects population health, providing tools to assess and address these issues.
The program is open to students from any faculty at the University of Alberta, particularly those in science, agriculture, and environmental studies who seek to broaden their knowledge of how environmental changes impact health.
Program Structure
Students are required to complete 15 credits. This includes:
- 9 credits from core courses:
- 6 credits from the following approved elective courses:
- SPH 415: Investigation of Foodborne Illness
- SPH 431: Statistical Methods in Health Research
- SPH 456/556: Climate Change and Human Health
- SPH 412: Environmental Risk Assessment and Management
- REN R 307: Environmental Assessment Principles and Methods
- REN R 364: Principles of Managing Natural Diversity
- REN R 366: Restoration Ecology
- REN R 446: Climates and Ecosystems
- REN R 466: Climate Change and the North
- AREC 365: Natural Resource Economics
- AREC 375: World Food Agriculture
- ENCS 473: Environmental and Conservation Policy
- AUBIO 355- Ecological Dynamics
- AUECO 346- Agricultural Economics
- AUENV 324- Resource and Environmental Management
- AUPOL 328- Environmental Politics
- AUSOC 358- Environmental Sociology
- HGEO 252: Human Dimensions of Environmental Hazards
- HGEO 443: Environment and Health
- HGEO 343: Geographies of Health and Healthcare
- EAS 100: Planet Earth
- EAS 204: The Geology of Your Environment
- EAS 208: Introduction to Global Change
- BIOL 341: Ecotoxicology
- BIOL 366: Northern Ecology
- BIOL 367: Conservation Biology
- BIOL 381: A Planet in Crisis
- BIOL 409: Zoonoses
- BIOL 433: Plant Animal Interactions
- BIOL 440: Watershed Ecology
- BIOL 442: Global Biogeochemical Cycles
- BIOL 471: Landscape Ecology
- CHEM 303: Environmental Chemistry I
- CHEM 305: Environmental Chemistry II
- CHEM 306: Green Chemistry
- CIV E 321: Principles of Environmental Modeling and Risk
- ENVE 322: Environmental Protection
- NS 376: Indigenous Demography and Disease
- NS 476: Perspectives on Indigenous Peoples Health and Wellbeing
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the certificate, students will:
- Understand the links between environmental factors and public health.
- Develop interdisciplinary solutions to address complex health issues.
- Apply theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios through case studies and risk assessments.
- Be equipped to propose policies and strategies to mitigate public health risks related to environmental changes.
Experiential Learning
The certificate emphasizes hands-on learning, incorporating case studies and problem-based learning. Students will engage with experts in fields such as climate change, antimicrobial resistance, and Indigenous public health, preparing them to tackle real-world challenges through interdisciplinary collaboration.
This certificate provides a unique opportunity to gain a comprehensive understanding of environmental health issues while contributing to solutions for the world’s most pressing health problems.