The health of mankind and the health of the planet in a historical-ethical perspective: an inseparable relationship and a single destiny

Recent years have seen increasingly severe natural disasters, the consequences of which have been catastrophic. Clearly, our global environment is undergoing major changes. The climate is becoming deranged and pollution on a global scale afflicts air, water, and land. We are faced with an unprecedented short‑ age of cultivable land and fresh water for drinking, irrigation, and livestock farming, while our marine systems are breaking down. These environmental changes have a very high anthropogenic component; they are induced by human activities that are poten‑ tially dangerous for both the environment and human life. Moreo‑ ver, not only do they have an enormous impact on the environ‑ ments in which we live and on our way of life, they also have harmful effects on our health. Indeed, we must understand that our body – as Hippocrates explained long ago – is a system that constantly interacts with the surrounding environment.