Worldwide, human health is now better than ever before. We have a higher life expectancy and lower under-five mortality than any previous generations. However, all of these improvements in human health have come at a cost: the planet’s health.

Most of these health improvements started in the Anthropocene — a geological epoch defined by human influence. The Anthropocene —thought to have started anytime between the Industrial revolution and World War II — has brought about a substantial increase in socio-economic standards but also a halt in biodiversity and climate change.

Since human and planetary health are interlinked, it would be short-sighted to see them as independent. Understanding and promoting health for humans and the planet — and ensuring that there is a fine balance between economic growth and prosperity, as well as sustainable use of the Earth’s resources — is one of the biggest public health challenges of the 21st Century.

The Anthropocene and the theory of "planetary boundaries" are the current background for environmental sciences and research on human health. However, such theories are still evolving and have some conceptual problems. For example, what is the aim of mitigation of environmental degradation or even "regeneration" of the planet, given that we cannot go back to the Holocene? What kind of equilibrium should we aim at,  in the context of continuous depletion of natural capital (the Earth Overshoot Day context)? And how do these conceptual problems affect research on environmental health and on the exposome (the biological capital of humans)?

To mark Frontiers in Public Health’s tenth anniversary, we have organized a webinar discussing The Anthropocene and Public Health. We are glad to count on Manolis Kogevinas, one of the most prominent scientists in the field, under the umbrella of a new broad European initiative called SPHERA. Manolis’ research interests lie in the interface between public health and planetary health, and he will give a presentation focusing on the Anthropocene and Public Health, followed by a discussion with the Field Chief Editor of Frontiers in Public Health, Paolo Vineis.

We warmly welcome you to join our Frontiers in Public Health webinar on the 4th of April at 12h00 CET. If you would like to attend, you can register using this link: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/2216788003877/WN_l_2eA82eTyW_v6GwIiy9jg