Our physical environment is a major determinant of human health. Recent environmental changes, such as urbanization, climate change, and air pollution, put significant pressure on human health. These so-called ‘wicked problems’ are complex and are often governed by a range of sectors and agents, often acting in silos. Current regulatory approaches are therefore fragmented, which undermines holistic legal solutions that take account of the interdependent relationship between human health and our physical environment.  Key examples are asthma and allergies resulting from air pollution, and antimicrobial resistance driven by agricultural practices (among others). This research line seeks ways in which law can carve out new bonds of solidarity, given the transnational causal relationships that underlie the health impacts of environmental change. This research line also examines how dignity can be guaranteed for those most affected by the wicked human health-environment problem: migrants, children, and people with chronic illness. We work on these challenges in the context of: 

1. A healthy food environment

Societal Impact

This project works towards legal solutions to diminish health issues concerned with the innovation of ‘health-life’ challenges and in the area of a healthy food environment and regarding innovative local regulatory pathways for diminishing the risks related to obesity.

Links in the UvA community

This research line contributes to UvA’s prestigious interfaculty Research Priority Area:

• Global Health and Development, coordinated by the Amsterdam Institute for Global Health & Development