Shared Lessons from Sepsis & Sustainable Development - Keynote Address by UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner

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UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner delivered a keynote address at “Sepsis: the Challenges of Science, Politics and Society” – a joint symposium by the Jena University Hospital and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina – on 10 March 2016. In his speech he addressed the issue of Sepsis – a life-threatening illness – and the link with sustainable development. Furthermore, the Executive Director shared some of UNEP’s experiences in using science to drive key issues up the agenda and generate both public and private sector action.

Recent epidemics - such as the recent Ebola epidemic - makes tackling diseases such as Sepsis all the more relevant. Sepsis is a life-threatening illness yet today, less than one third of patients receive the best care. Even in the richer countries many issues remain when it comes to treating the disease.  Sepsis is the most expensive condition treated in American hospitals and costs over $20 billion and increases by well over 10 per cent a year, accounting for more deaths than prostate cancer, breast cancer and AIDS combined. More information about this illness can be found on the World Sepsis Day website.

Environmental factors are responsible for nearly a quarter of the global burden of disease and up to 60 per cent of emerging infectious diseases that affect humans are zoonotic. “You only have to look at Bird Flu, Ebola or Zika to see that the journey from local outbreak to global pandemic is much shorter than it used to be. Increased urbanization and transportation networks, climate change and poor waste management all have an impact,” Mr. Steiner said.

Achim Steiner concluded that “tackling Sepsis is key to delivering more than half of the 17 goals of the 2030 Agenda - just as delivering the goals is essential to long term action on Sepsis.” He added that he thought “organizations like The Leopoldina and The World Sepsis Alliance do a great job of putting a human face on a deadly situation” and that he hoped that “that will develop through growing international recognition and support for World Sepsis Day in September. However, turning emotion into action is another matter.”

Achim Steiner’s full speech can be read here: http://bit.ly/1R9laJr