PHE Champion Educators: Dr Sonja McKeown 

PHE Champion Students: Marcus Mohr and Tara Moynihan

L&T Activity being Co-Designed: A workshop in  DEV3022 - Developmental and anatomical basis of human health and disease with pre-, in- and post-class activities to achieve the following learning objectives: 

1. Identify environmental factors that can impact health across the lifespan of an individual prior to conception, during gestation and in the post-natal period (up to age 5), and discuss which of these factors are becoming more prevalent as a result of climate change. 

2. Revise content from DEV3022 specific to the (i) urinary system (ii) reproductive systems and (iii) gastrointestinal tract, and discuss factors that influence these from an individual, public health, global health, one health and planetary health perspective, considering  how these systems are interconnected and can ultimately promote health across the lifespan. 

3. Describe practical ways in which Indigenous knowledge and value systems can be embedded into future bioscience and medicine practices to promote planetary health and reduce the burden of disease.   

Pre-Pilot Workshop: 4th October

Pilot: Week 12, Semester 2, 2023

Post-Pilot Workshop: 31st October

Summary of materials: Three group activities were covered in the class: 

Activity 1: Research an environmental factor that impacts the development of a nominated organ system. 

Activity 2: Research broader planetary health impacts of the chosen environmental factor. 

Activity 3: Consider differences between Western and Indigenous worldviews, and how altering perspective might impact scientific practices and improve planetary health.

The slide deck used in class, containing details of activities and links to videos are available upon request.  Please contact Sonja.McKeown@monash.edu to request these materials.