OTTAWA/Traditional, Unceded Territory of the Algonquin Anishnaabeg, April 19, 2024 – As negotiators, experts and frontline communities gather for the fourth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on plastic pollution (INC-4), the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment has a number of physicians across Canada who can speak about plastics and human health topics. These include:
Dr. Lyndia Dernis, anesthesiologist and member of AQME (Association québécoise des médecins pour l’environnement – Quebec regional committee). Specialty topics include endocrine disruptors in plastics, microplastics, plastic in medical devices. Available for interviews in French & English.
Anesthetist since 2004. Aware of the important role played by the operating theatre in the generation of waste and greenhouse gas emissions within a hospital, she created and leads an action group to actively reduce the ecological footprint of St Mary’s operating theatre and is now responsible for the sustainable care sub-committee of the CIUSSS de l’ouest de l’ile de Montréal. Part of her work is to raise awareness among caregivers of the importance of plastic waste and endocrine disruptors in medical equipment and also to find ways to reduce the use of single-use plastics in her institution.
Dr. Sharon Dodd, family physician and member of CAPE BC. Specialty topics include microplastics, family medicine & primary care. Available for interviews in English.
I am a CCFP certified Family physician providing longitudinal care for 23 years in Richmond, BC. I have been a member of the BC chapter of CAPE since 2022 and completed the first cohort training of AMP (Advocacy and Mobilization Program) in March 2023. I am also an advocate for family medicine and sat on the Board of BC Family Doctors from 2019 to 2023, and am a current member of the Council on Health Economics and Policy at Doctors of BC. Most importantly, I enjoy various outdoor activities and support my 3 teenagers with their “Climate Action Now” club at high school.
Dr. George Tjensvoll Kitching, family physician and CAPE board secretary. Specialty topics include microplastics and nanoplastic pollution and air pollution. Available for interviews in English.
I’m a family physician working as a locum in several Kingston area family medicine clinics and hold the position of Faculty Associate at Queen’s University. I am on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment and serve as Secretary to this Board. I have an MSc. in public health with an interest in planetary health and the health impacts of pollutants including the emerging threat of microplastics.
Dr. Atanu Sarkar, assistant professor at Memorial University’s Faculty of Medicine and founder of CAPE Newfoundland and Labrador. Specialty topics include micro and nano plastics, alternative management of plastic waste and the circular economy, behavioral economics. Available for interviews in English.
Dr. Atanu Sarkar is a professor at the division of population health and applied health sciences, faculty of medicine, Memorial University of Newfoundland. He is trained in medicine and public health from India and environment at Queen’s University, Ontario. He is an expert in environmental contamination, climate change, and human health and environmental management. He has published several research papers in international journals and presented research in numerous national and international journals. He teaches undergraduate medical students and graduate students on public health. He is founder of CAPE Newfoundland and Labrador regional committee.
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For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Reykia Fick, Communications Director, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), 647-762-9168, media@cape.ca