Planetary Health, Public Health & Economics

​This course will offer a versatile view on the topic of Planetary and Public Health in combination with economic questions. Central to this course is the exploration of the interdependencies between human health and the natural environment, such as the associations between health behavior, nutrition and planetary health. In addition to that, students will learn about sustainable economic models and their application to challenges related to climate change and sustainability.

The course should prepare students by increasing their knowledge in:

• The economics of health and healthcare
• Economic evaluation of health interventions
• Planetary health and the relationship between human health and the health of the natural environment
• Associations between health behaviour, nutrition and planetary health
• Sustainable economic models to protect planetary health

The course should increase students’ skills and ability to:

• Use and interpret economic concepts for health policy and public health
• Interpret economic evaluations of health interventions
• Identify the interdependencies between human health and the natural environment
• Identify the associations between human health behaviour and the natural environment
• Interpret the likely impacts on human and planetary health of alternative economic models and policies

The first week serves as an introduction to the various fields of planetary health, public health and health economics respectively in this interdisciplinary course. The second week focuses on current questions and research approaches.