Sustainability is about creating a healthy, fair and resilient future. It requires long-term thinking and ongoing action to ensure people’s needs are met now, without harming the ability of future generations to meet theirs.

Sustainability isn’t just about climate change and the environment – the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs) also cover social and economic sustainability. But addressing the climate crisis is essential to achieving these goals.

Health and care services provided by the NHS and independent sectors, including adult social care, are a major contributor to climate change. Health and care services globally account for approximately 5% of total greenhouse gas emissions.

The delivery of health and care requires equipment and consumables that deplete natural resources and create harmful waste and biproducts. This includes how we:

• heat and supply energy to hospitals
• manufacture and use consumables and equipment
• and how we manage the waste we create.

All of these can increase the burden on health and disease, particularly in poor communities or those where inequalities exist. 

Our warming planet is placing increased strain on health services, the physical and mental health of our populations and health care professionals’ ability to deliver quality care.

Sustainability in your workplace

Climate change can feel overwhelming, but sustainability in nursing is all about small changes. Get guidance and inspiration on how to make sustainability part of every day practice, rather than adding extra work.

Listen to RCN Professional Lead for Sustainability Rose Gallagher and Professor of Human Thermal Physiology Davide Filingeri.

They discuss the impact of rising temperatures on patients, staff and care delivery and what steps can be taken to mitigate these.

We're using our role as both a professional body and trade union to do the following:

• reduce our own environmental impact
• support nursing staff to practise sustainably
• influence national policy
• strengthen climate-related nursing education
• and advocate for urgent action to protect health and reduce inequalities caused by climate change.

Read our position statement on climate change. 

We collaborate and support many organisations and individuals working on improving sustainability in health and care.

Our formal alliances

UK Health Alliance on Climate Change (UKHACC)

We're a founder member of the Alliance, which brings together leading health care professional organisations. It advocates for actions at governmental and system level to tackle climate change and protect and promote public health.

It was formed in 2016 to coordinate action, provide leadership and amplify the voices of the UK’s healthcare professionals on all things relating to climate change and sustainability.

You can find out more on the Alliance’s website.

Air Pollution Awareness Coalition (APAC)

The Air Pollution Awareness Coalition (APAC) is a cross-sector coalition to improve public understanding of air pollution and support action to reduce harm. To learn more about the serious health effects of air pollution, listen to our podcast below.

Design for Life programme (Department of Health and Social Care)

This programme is run by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and focuses on making medical technology more sustainable by reducing waste and reusing products. Its goal is that by 2045, the UK will move away from using single-use medical technology products whenever possible and instead have a circular system where products are designed to be reused, repaired, remanufactured, or recycled. This will make the healthcare system more resilient, support economic growth, provide better value for patients and the NHS, and reduce environmental harm.

We helped develop the Design for Life roadmap, and will host the launch of the Think, Reduce, Reuse campaign and an event marking two years of the Design for Life programme in October 2026.

Podcast: Air quality - Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah

This podcast recognises the serious health effects of air pollution, which are worsened by rising global temperatures.

Ella Roberta Adoo Kissi Debrah was born healthy but suffered a fatal asthma attack due to living next to a major road. Ella is the first person in the world to have air pollution listed as a cause of death on her death certificate.

Listen to our podcast of her mother’s lived experience.

Find out more about the Ella Roberta Foundation.