RPS urges pharmacy to join in its commitment to tackling climate emergency

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has called on pharmacy to commit to sustainability as it pledges to become a truly environmentally responsible organisation.

"The climate crisis is the biggest threat modern society has ever faced," the RPS said in statement on Wednesday (September 1).

That’s why its "three national boards and Assembly have made a climate change declaration and are committing to collaborate with governments and other bodies across the world to tackle this crisis."

To accompany its declaration, the RPS said it was making "a series of proactive commitments to influence change and hold ourselves accountable" which would include developing pharmacy’s role in decarbonisation -- focusing on areas such as public health and prevention of disease, the medicines supply chain and the infrastructure in which pharmacy teams work.

The RPS will also work with various governments, health services and the pharmaceutical industry to "deliver on their sustainability strategies" and advocate how the entire pharmacy profession can contribute.

Claiming that it was "already a zero to landfill organisation" which champions recycling and eliminating single use plastics on its sites, the RPS says it will convert to 100 per cent renewable energy across its offices in Cardiff, Edinburgh and London and reduce our overall energy and water usage.

RPS president Professor Claire Anderson said: “The climate crisis will not just have an impact on the pharmacy profession, but your family, friends, and everyday life.

“The RPS declaration is leading the way for pharmacy and demonstrates our commitment to change.

“It’s more important than ever that we turn words into action and become more sustainable and this applies to everyone. As individual practitioners and collectively as a profession, we must identify where we can make changes in our practice to reduce carbon emissions.

“Join us by acting now, and change the direction we are going in.”