Advancing sustainable development through planetary health – A holistic approach to global health: A systematic review

Abstract

In global health, three holistic and multidisciplinary approaches are typically mentioned: One Health, Ecohealth, and Planetary Health. The most recent concept, Planetary Health, has been spontaneously developed and promoted as a new science since 2015, with the establishment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This coincidence marks a new era of interconnection between Global Health and Sustainable Development. However, this connection has rarely been examined, and a full-scale study covering the essential elements of Planetary Health is lacking. In this study, we aim to (a) provide an insightful understanding of the current research on Planetary Health, (b) address the interconnectedness between Planetary Health and SDGs and sustainability,s and (c) explore the determinants of Planetary Health in Sustainable Development context. The findings from diverse articles have revealed an increase in research interest among scholars in Planetary Health and Sustainable Development. However, regarding new contributions, most research deals with the topic in general terms rather than developing an analytical framework of concepts. Among the three pillars of sustainability, linkages have been strongly established between the economic and social impacts on Planetary Health while the environmental dimension has been slightly neglected. In terms of detailed SDG linkage, connections with SDG3 and SDG9 were found in all articles, whereas the linkages with SDG7 and SDG14 were absent. The determinants of Planetary Health in the context of sustainable development have also been explored in which climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the biggest contributors to the promotion of planetary health.