Talks

Climate and Human Health: Creating Global Cultures of Care

Faith Toran is currently serving as a Communication Specialist with the Humanitarian Action on Climate and Environment (HACE) Team of Doctors without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF Canada)’s, Faith channels her energies into producing and showcasing compelling communication materials that spotlight MSF's expertise in Climate, Environment, and Health (CEH). Her role centers on facilitating knowledge exchange and scaling sustainable solutions to address pressing global challenges. She is actively engaged in operational research at MSF, particularly focusing on Risk Communications and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Operational Response. 

Over the past 13 years, Faith has traversed diverse landscapes, contributing expertise in Communication for Development (C4D) and Project Management across the US, Burkina Faso, France, India, and Guinea. Her keen understanding of C4D underscores her commitment to fostering community-centric solutions, particularly aimed at enhancing the well-being of children and women, especially the marginalized, in both emergency and developmental contexts. Notable endeavors include a sustainable development field mission in Burkina Faso with The United States Peace Corps, an impact study on participatory frameworks within waste management programs in rural India, and communication management for the International Association for National Youth Service in France. 

Dr. Mili Roy is a practicing physician and surgeon in the Greater Toronto area, also involved in medical research and teaching. She is Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, and Section Editor/Board member at the Canadian Journal of Ophthalmology. She serves as Ontario Regional Co-Chair of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) and holds Climate Reality Corps Leader certification.  Since its inception, she has also co-chaired the Ontario Climate Emergency Campaign, an environmental democracy organization open to all Ontarians. She is committed to ongoing learning including completing a Harvard Medicine Climate Health Organizing Fellowship.

As a mother and physician, she has been passionate about the environment for decades while working everyday to further human health. As the need to act has become more urgent, these spaces have increasingly merged in her work at the intersection of environmental health and human health. Her advocacy work today includes educational activities; media work; organizing and participating in public rallies and events. She is also engaged in policy work at municipal, provincial and federal levels, and has a strong interest in democracy as a lever for climate action and health.