The unique biological capacities of humankind enabled the emergence of organized societies and sophisticated and globalized cultures. The progressive and universal recognition of science and technology as bulwarks of our species' survival, longevity, and quality of life made individual and organizational behaviors the main drivers of current (and future) human and planetary health standards.
Environmental Health Behavior: Concepts, Determinants, and Impacts, integrates two different but intertwined fields, environmental health sciences and human behavior sciences, identifying and systematizing current knowledge about human behaviors and habits, and addressing the challenge of environmental sustainability. The book takes the reader through a conceptual framework for environmental health behavior (EHB) as an emerging field of public and environmental health, positioning behavior change as the main challenge for the success of promoting sustainable human and planetary health. Its reading promotes insight into the environmental impacts of human demands and behavior, and, vice-versa, about the impacts of the environment on human behavior change. Moreover, different evidence-based strategies to promote EHB change are identified as practical tools for stakeholders involved in the challenge of promoting intergenerational well-being in balanced and sustainable human-produced and natural systems.
Ana Virgolino is a health and clinical psychologist and a researcher at the Institute of Environmental Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Lisbon, where she has been working on several projects linked to environmental health, mental health, epidemiology, and behavioral change, also involving interventions at the community. She is the responsible investigator for the participation of the Lisbon Faculty of Medicine in several international projects in the area of human biomonitoring.
Osvaldo Santos is a clinical and health psychologist, and psychotherapist. He is a Lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon (FMUL), teaching several topics of health psychology, quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods applied to different areas of health psychology, health promotion, public health, and environmental health. He is the head of the Environmental Health Behavior Lab, at the Institute of Environmental Health of FMUL. He led several international projects in different health psychology areas, focusing on health behavior change. More recently, he has coordinated several local health promotion strategies, envisioning the transformation of environments to support healthy behaviors adoption. His work has been recognized with several scientific awards. He is one of the most cited Portuguese psychologists, with publications in several of the most relevant scientific journals worldwide (including Nature, Science, and The Lancet).
Ricardo R. Santos is a Board-certified Biologist. He is a Researcher at the Institute of Environmental Health and a Lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Lisbon (UL). He is also a doctoral researcher at the NOVA Institute of Communication, an associate member of the ICS-UL Human-Animal Studies Hub, an associate member of the UL Tropical College, and a steering committee member of the DASH – The Doctor as a Humanist. His research work and lecturing covers a variety of areas, including science communication, ethics and bioethics, environmental health, one health, planetary health, climate change, science and art, animal studies, and grief.
