The CAS Earth Day webinar with the theme ‘Our power, our planet’ is our annual even to celebrate Earth Day and to remind all of us to do our part in reducing our carbon footprint. The webinar focuses on the significant problems we are still facing from global warming, and the various strategies that anesthesiologists can adopt, as well as tools that are available to us to do our part in reducing carbon dioxide emissions in health care. 

After participating in this activity, participants will be able to: 

1. Understand the current impact from climate change on humanity 

2. Appreciate various strategies and tools available to anesthesiologists to reduce carbon footprint in our practice 

3. Formulate own plan to practice anesthesia in an environmentally sustainable way 

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This event is moderated by CAS Environmental Sustanability Secretary Dr Stephan Williams (bio)  

Title: Introduction of the Webinar & CAS Position Statement presentation
Speakers: Dr Vivian Ip (bio), Dr Matt Walker (bio)

After participating in this activity, participants will be able to:  

1. Describe the CAS position statement on Greening the OR
2. ​Understand the different metrics used for short-lived volatile agents
3. Appreciate the continual advocacy work  

Title: Climate Change in the Year 2025 - Where Are We?
Speaker: Dr Timur Ozelsel (bio)  

After participating in this activity, participants will be able to: 

1. Understand the current impact from climate change on humanity
2. ​Appreciate the urgency of the climate crisis 

Title: Nitrous oxide and the loss through leaks: One Canadian Hospitals experience
Speaker: Dr Christopher Prabhakar (bio)  

After participating in this activity, participants will be able to: 

1. Understand the environmental impact of nitrous oxide
2. Describe the problems with maintaining and using nitrous oxide pipeline
3. Describe strategies to engage stakeholders to implement nitrous oxide pipeline decommissioning 

Title: Reducing Energy Consumption in the Operating Room: An Anesthesia Perspective
Speaker: Dr Joanna Fifen (bio)  

After participating in this activity, participants will be able to: 

1. Discuss how we can optimize our anesthesia workstation and the ultrasound machine to reduce energy consumption.
2. Discuss the role of TIVA in reducing energy consumption in the OR.
3. Discuss the role of interdepartmental collaboration in promoting sustainable practices within the OR. 

Title: Partnering with Industry: Challenges and Opportunities in Healthcare Sustainability
Speaker: Dr Caroline Lin (bio)  

After participating in this activity, participants will be able to: 

1. Recognize the potential benefits and risks of industry collaboration in healthcare sustainability.
2. Identify key challenges in forming partnerships with industry. 
3. Understand supply chain opacities and their impact on sustainable healthcare initiatives. 
4. Develop strategies for establishing industry partnerships that align with sustainability goals. 

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Moderator: Dr Stephan Williams
Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC

Stephan Williams is an anesthesiologist and Medical co-manager for Carbon-neutrality and Sustainability at the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal. He is also responsible for the Carbon-neutrality committee of the Quebec Association of Anesthesiologists as well as the Department of Anesthesiology at the Université de Montréal. 

Speaker: Dr Vivian Ip
University of Calgary, Calgary, AB

Dr Vivian Ip is a Clinical Professor at the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She is a practicing anesthesiologist with fellowship training in Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, and Ambulatory anesthesia.  At the South Health Campus Hospital in Calgary, she is the Director of Regional Anesthesia Division, and the Director of the Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Medicine Fellowship Program. At the Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society (CAS), she is the Chair of the Regional Anesthesia Section and the Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Section. At the American Society of Regional Anesthesia (ASRA) Pain Medicine, she is the Chair of the Newsletter Committee/Editor-in-chief of the newsletter, and the Chair of the Green Anesthesia Special Interest Group. Along with these roles, she also serves as an Editor for the journal, Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (RAPM), and she is a member of the Editorial Board at the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia (CJA). In addition, she is active in research and continues to publish at peer-reviewed journals. 

Speaker: Dr Matt Walker
Vancouver General Hospital, Vancouver, BC

Dr Matthew Walker is an anesthesiologist at the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) and a clinical assistant professor at the University of British Columbia (UBC). He completed medical school at Dalhousie University, residency at UBC and a fellowship in Trauma Anesthesiology at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne. He is the medical director of the Post Anesthesia Care Unit and co-lead of the Sustainable Anesthesia group at VGH. He is the secretary of the Canadian Anesthesia Society Environmental Sustainability Section. His clinical and research interests are in anesthesia for trauma and burns, perioperative medicine, and sustainable anesthesia. He previously worked as a mechanical engineer and as a lawyer.  

Speaker: Dr Timur Ozelsel 
University of Alberta Hospital, Edmonton, AB

Dr Timur Ozelsel is an anesthesiologist, a husband, a father, and a concerned citizen of the world. His passion for protecting animals and the world we live in began in childhood and has only increased since. In his opinion, there can be no topic of greater importance, since it is directly tied to human survival or extinction. 

Speaker: Dr Christopher Prabhakar
Vancouver General Hospital, Vancouver, BC

Dr Prabhakar grew up in London Ontario and went to medical school at The University of Toronto. He completed rural family medicine and GP-Anesthesia residency at UBC, and worked briefly as a rural GP and GP-A. He re-entered residency to complete Anesthesiology residency in 2012 at UBC. He then completed a fellowship in Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Medicine at Dalhousie University. He currently works as a staff anesthesiologist at St. Paul's and Mount St. Joseph Hospitals in Vancouver, BC, where I lead the Regional Anesthesia Division. 

Speaker: Dr Joanna Fifen  
University of Calgary, Calgary, AB 

Dr Joanna Fifen works at the South Health Campus (SHC) as a Staff Anesthesiologist in Calgary, AB and is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. She serves as the SHC Site Research Lead and is a committee member for the Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Medicine Fellowship. Dr Fifen serves on the CAS Environmental Sustainability Section Executive and on the CAS Continuing Professional Development Modules Subcommittee. She is passionate about research, providing quality care to patients and enjoys teaching various stages of learners that rotate through the OR. Dr Fifen has published twenty two peer-reviewed publications and two book chapters and has received numerous research and teaching awards.

Speaker: Dr Carole Lin
Stanford University, Stanford, USA 

Dr Carole Lin is a pediatric regional anesthesiologist at the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital who specializes in healthcare sustainability. She is the Chair of the California Society of Anesthesiologists Healthcare Sustainability Committee and is actively involved in research and implementation of environmentally sustainable practices in anesthesiology. She collaborates with industry partners and healthcare institutions to develop strategies that reduce the environmental impact of medical waste and anesthesia practices.