Pöördumine

European Environment and Health Process (EHP) Secretariat

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION • REGIONAL OFFICE FOR EUROPE

WHO European Centre for Environment and Health

EHP Partnership Form

1. Name of the Partnership

Environment and Health Partnership on Risk reduction in the school environment

2. Leading country and/or organization

Hungary

3. Partners

Germany, Italy

4. Objectives

The objective of the Partnership is to promote actions towards improving the quality of indoor

school environments to protect children’s health, including through the dissemination of

existing tools and resources, and identification of measures to advance more efficient uptake of

good practices. Partners will aim to facilitate action both, on policy and technical levels. The

Partnership also aims to raise awareness among a wider range of stakeholders, including parents

and children to achieve a behavioural change that can further improve health and learning

outcomes.

5. Description (max 200 words)

A healthy environment in facilities for children (schools, kindergartens, etc.) is instrumental

for health and learning. Children’s health and school environment have been in the focus of

work of the European Environment and Health Process since the 2004 Budapest Ministerial

Conference. There is sound scientific evidence on health hazards associated with poor indoor

air quality, as well as water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). Through the work of WHO and

its partners, this knowledge has been translated into practical tools and other resources that

are available to all countries in the WHO European Region. However, the uptake of good

practices lags in many countries. In addition, challenges still need to be addressed, including

those related to legal arrangements, cooperation among health and education sectors, the

quality/safety of products and services, availability of health guidance for emerging and new

chemicals, etc. To tackle them, coordinated and cooperative efforts of Member States and

stakeholders are needed across sectoral boundaries.

The Partnership will provide a platform for knowledge sharing and peer-to-peer learning on

existing good practices to achieve higher awareness and to facilitate the uptake of existing

resources and established good practices in managing indoor environments safely. The

Partnership could ultimately also support the development of technical resources to support

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actions for achieving the desired positive change in the quality of indoor environment for

children, including through behavioural change.

6. Expected outcomes

The Partnership is expected to achieve higher awareness to the health risks and mitigation

measures of indoor environments in childcare faciltities, including air quality and WASH. It

will provide a hub for sharing of knowledge, experiences and practices for partners and other

countries in the region, and for advocating for cross-sectoral cooperation towards achieving

progress in policy and practice. It will advance the protection of children’s health through

improved indoor environment and through behaviour change to for better health practices.

7. Any additional optional information/document

Potential establishment of a European Environment and Health Process (EHP) Partnership on Risk Reduction in School Environments

Dear National Focal Points, We wish to inform you that the National Center for Public Health and Pharmacy of Hungary and the WHO Collaborating Centre for Environmental Risk Management initiated the process to establish a European Environment and Health Process (EHP) Partnership on risk reduction in school environments. The draft proposal has been formulated in collaboration with the WHO European Centre for Environment and Health. The draft has been circulated initially to those countries who expressed interest at the Seventh Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health or have significant previous experience and achievements in advancing a healthy school environment. As of June 2024, Germany and Italy have confirmed their intention to participate. We aim to launch the EHP Partnership on risk reduction in school environment at the upcoming meeting of the European Environment and Health Task Force (EHTF), which will take place on 26−27 June 2024, in Utrecht, Kingdom of the Netherlands. A healthy school environment is fundamental for the health and well-being of children as well as for optimal learning outcomes. It links to Sustainable Development Goal 4.a to “build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all” and it is one of the key commitments of the Budapest Declaration to “promote a safe, clean and healthy built environment across all settings”. The Partnership proposes a holistic approach to a school environment, including risks associated with indoor air quality and water, sanitation and hygiene. We believe that many countries, organisations and institutions in the pan- European region have good practices to share in the framework of the Partnership and can also benefit from the exchange of knowledge. Therefore, we kindly ask you to support the establishment of this new Partnership at the meeting of the EHTF. We also seek your interest in joining the Partnership. If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Best regards, Tamás Pándics MD PhD Director of Public Health Laboratories and Methodology National Center for Public Health and Pharmacy