Sustainable development and dental care. A Swedish approach and why you should take the first step today.

Today everyone is talking about sustainability. Sustainable development and the three pillars of sustainability are often mentioned in the media but what does it actually mean, and how can the dental profession move towards a more climate- and environmentally friendly behaviour and mindset?

Sustainability entails so much more than recycling and protecting the environment, and it is hard to keep up since the development and research within the field is moving forward so quickly. The UN targets set a path to achieve a sustainable world and to stop the global warming, but even Sweden that is ranked no. 1 in the world is struggling to achieve these targets by 2030.

This presentation will give the listener an overview of modern time sustainability in laymen’s term, explanation of different definitions, the misconception of plastic, how we as the dental profession can bring sustainable products into the dental office and to our patients and why we should proactively strive to be on the forefront of green(er) dentistry.

Listeners will

• learn the foundation of modern time sustainability
• familiarize with definitions such as bioplastics, biodegradable, greenwashing and life cycle analysis
• learn the difference between climate friendly and environmentally friendly
• understand the complexity of sustainability, avoid the pitfalls and develop sustainable thinking in your dental practice
• follow the manufacture of sustainable products from beginning to end.