Nurses Promoting Inclusive, Safe, Resilient, and Sustainable Cities and Communities: Taking Action on COVID-19, Systemic Racism, and Climate Change

Abstract

This article is one in a series in which contributing authors discuss how the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are linked to everyday clinical issues; national public health emergencies; and other nursing issues, such as leadership, shared governance, and advocacy. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a 15-year plan of action to achieve the goals, was unanimously adopted by all UN member states in September 2015 and took effect on January 1, 2016. The Agenda consists of 17 SDGs addressing social, economic, and environmental determinants of health and 169 associated targets focused on five themes: people, planet, peace, prosperity, and partnership. The SDGs build on the work of the UN Millennium Development Goals, which were in effect from 2000 to 2015. The current article highlights SDG 11—making “cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.”

The application of resilience theory in urban development: a literature review

“…Meanwhile, under the guidance of relevant policies, American scholars have conducted more extensive research on urban resilience, involving urban disasters such as hurricane and flood (Vugrin et al 2011 ; Cutter 2015 ; Khazai et al 2018 ; Deatrick 2015 ), urban resources such as water and energy (Milman and Short 2008 ; McPhearson et al 2015 ; Raub et al 2021 ; Buckley et al 2021 ), urban ecology (Pickett et al 2004 ; Menconi et al 2020 ), urban society (McMillen et al 2016 ), etc. Recently, the research on urban resilience in the context of COVID-19 also has attracted the attention of scholars (Schenk et al 2021 ; Pietrzak et al 2021 ). It is worth mentioning that the concern about climate change is obvious in various fields, and improving climate resilience has become a consensus among American scholars.…”

The nurse as peacebuilder: Intersections of health and peace

“…Recently, the American Journal of Nursing published several articles on the theme of the intersection of nursing's agenda relative to the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), documenting the relevance for nursing across practice settings including local, state, national and international arenas. For example, The Global Climate Challenge, a nursing led initiative to educate health professionals about the health effects of climate change, is one way in which nurses are responding to SDG Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable (Schenk et al, 2021;United Nations, 2015). The Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, in consulting with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), is contributing to the work of SDG 5: Gender Equality; Oerther and Rosa (2020) address SDG 3: Ensuring Healthy Lives & Promoting Well-Being and SDG10: Reducing Inequalities Within and Among Countries, stating "Clinical nurses are particularly important because they often lead care coordination and transitions of care across settings and in partnership with a number of providers" (p. 60).…”

Nurses’ Environmental Practices in Northern Peruvian Hospitals

“…The relationship between clinical services and these characteristics determines a hospital’s environmental impact, and the health risks posed to employees, patients, and the general population (Collins & Demorest, 2022; Corvalan et al, 2020). However, nurses can be essential change agents within the healthcare system through the promotion of green activities that favor the planet, which is a role recognized across nursing scholarship (Cook et al, 2019; Schenk, Potter, et al, 2021; Terry et al, 2019).…”