At the 2026 Our Planet, Our Health Convention, three incredible health professionals courageously told the story of how and why they became the climate advocates they are today. You can now hear their stories in this special epsiode. Our storytellers are Nisha Sridhar, a fourth-year medical student; Wendy Bernstein, a senior community psychiatrist at the Wellness Equity Alliance; and Sheetal Khedkar Rao, an assistant professor of clinical medicine at the University of Illinois Chicago.

When health professionals share our stories, we help people remember our words, find their purpose, and boldly envision a healthier future. We hope this episode is the dose of inspiration you need to share your own.

 Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

Our annual conventions bring health professionals and advocates from around the country together to learn and innovate. This year, three participants agreed to visit our new podcast studio to share what they're up to, their passion and commitment, their projects at home, and their particular approach to climate health. Dr. Amanda d'Almeida (California) is a newly minted family physician with a focus on community health and education. Dr. Keisha Reneé Callins (Georgia) is an OB/GYN with a lens of system change at both clinical and legislative levels. Dr. John Balbus (Maryland) is a long-time leader in climate health policy who points out all the ways policy breakthroughs are persisting, and the diverse pathways we can take. These are their stories.

Referenced in this episode:

Medicine Explained: https://www.medicineexplained.org/social

the NUANCE // a community health podcast: https://www.medicineexplained.org/podcast

The Climate & Health Equity Fellowship: https://medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/climate-and-health-equity-fellowship-chef/

 Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

Climate change is increasingly shaping why people are forced to leave their homes, the risks they face along the way, and their health and safety in new places.

Today's guest is Marysel Pagán Santana, DrPH, MS, the Director of Environmental and Occupational Health of Migrant Clinicians Network in Puerto Rico. She leads and coordinates MCN projects related to occupational health, disaster preparedness, and emergency response. She sits down with host Dr. Lisa Patel to explore who is affected, what health systems can do to better understand their needs to ensure continuity of care, and how seeing migration as normal can help us build stronger communities.

Migrant Clinicians Network:

https://www.migrantclinician.org/

MCN Health Network:

https://www.migrantclinician.org/our-work/health-network.html

Support our work and become a member of the Consortium here: https://medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/donate-or-become-a-member/

 Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

 In this special mini episode, we're taking a moment to reflect on where we've been this year and to look ahead at what the path forward may hold in 2026.

Support our work and become a member of the Consortium here: https://medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/donate-or-become-a-member/

 Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

Cancer Alley is an 85-mile stretch of land from  New Orleans to Baton Rouge. With the largest density of petrochemical operations in the world, the area is ground zero for environmental injustice and human rights violations. Sharon Lavigne is a pioneering organizer who resides along Cancer Alley in St. James Parish, Louisiana. She's a former special education teacher who founded RISE St. James to push back against the proliferation of petrochemical industries.

In this episode, Sharon reflects on the health harms her community faces, the fight against industry presence, and what healthcare professionals can do to be better allies in this advocacy.

If you would like to support Sharon and RISE St. James, please click here: https://risestjames.org/. Their work is truly a fight to survive, thrive, and prosper. We can do our part by not looking away and lending our time, energy, and resources to a healthier, safer future.

Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

 As families start gathering this holiday season, this episode invites us to consider how nourishing ourselves with thoughtful food choices can also help care for the planet.

Our guest is Dr. Tamiko Katsumoto. Dr. Katsumoto is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Division of Immunology and Rheumatology at Stanford University and is board-certified in lifestyle medicine. She is passionate about educating her patients and colleagues on the merits of more sustainable and healthier diets as a way to improve individual health and mitigate climate change.

Referenced in this episode:

Plants for Joints study: https://academic.oup.com/rheumatology/article/62/8/2683/6972770?login=true

Blue Zones study: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6125071/

Support our work and become a member of the Consortium here: https://medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/donate-or-become-a-member/

The EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy, sustainable, and just food systems: https://www.thelancet.com/commissions-do/EAT-2025

Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

From global walkouts and strikes to protests and boycotts, youth climate activists  are showing how collective action can drive real change by organizing and mobilizing thousands around bold campaigns.  At the same time, help professionals are bringing their expertise and trusted voices to the fight. So how do we bring these groups together to amplify their impact and tackle the complex challenges of climate change more effectively than ever before?

On the final episode of "The Organizer's Handbook," guest host Dr. Pedja Stojicic sits down with Dominika Lasota, a youth climate justice activist. Dominika discusses the power of simple messages and building connections with communities on the frontlines of the crisis, explores how youth organizers and health professionals can learn from one another to build a stronger movement, and reflects on her vision for the future.

Support our work and become a member of the Consortium here: https://medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/donate-or-become-a-member/

Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.

The climate crisis is calling on health professionals to organize in new ways. Around the world, they're turning that concern into collective action.

In the second episode of our fall organizing series, guest host Pedja Stojicic sits down with Shweta Narayan, a trained social worker with over two decades of environmental justice campaigning and advocacy experience. She discusses the scope of the problem, what true solidarity looks like in organizing, and how trust and humility can help health professionals build stronger, more hopeful movements.

Referenced in this episode:

Cradle to Grave Report: https://climateandhealthalliance.org/cradle-to-grave-the-health-toll-of-fossil-fuels-and-the-imperative-for-a-just-transition-2nd-edition/

Global Community Organizing and Advocacy for Climate and Health (Global COACH) Scholars: https://fxb.harvard.edu/global-coach/

Global Climate and Health Alliance: https://climateandhealthalliance.org/

Doctors for Clean Air: https://doctorsforcleanair.org/

Support our work and become a member of the Consortium here: https://medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/donate-or-become-a-member/

Healthy Climate America is produced by Savannah Martincic. Our podcast consultant is Julie Hantman. Our podcast intern is Isaias Segui. Our music was composed by James Harp.