The Office of Environmental Sustainability (OES) at Rush University Medical Center is measuring and reporting on its greenhouse gas emissions with tools from Practice Greenhealth in accordance with OES’s commitment to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Pledge. Rush University Medical Center engages the RUSH community of clinicians, staff, and students through collaborative events and efforts, like Earth Month tree giveaway, Bike Commuter Challenge, Sustainability Open Houses, and reusing furniture through the Rheaply platform. Further, OES supports student learning on climate, sustainability, and health by hosting student interns from the Rush Health Systems Management program and educating students in classes and at university events, such as Student Health Fairs, on the intersection of human and planetary health. Lastly, OES staff are supporting a Chicagoland initiative to collect street-level heat and humidity data to build a heat vulnerability index to better inform city efforts in protecting citizens from extreme heat events that are being exacerbated by the rapidly changing climate.
Resources
- https://www.rush.edu/news/rush-joins-national-pledge-decarbonize-health-care-sector-make-facilities-resilient
- https://www.rush.edu/news/sustainability-reflected-joan-and-paul-rubschlager-building
- https://www.rush.edu/news/rushs-new-hospital-largest-new-construction-health-care-facility-world-receive-leed-gold
