Occupational Therapy, as a profession, has always maintained a core focus on sustainable practice. The profession has its roots in the Arts and Crafts and Moral Treatment movements, with extrinsic activities seen as being the way we communicate our intrinsic beliefs to the world.   Hence it is a core belief that humans need to be involved in meaningful activity and that we gain connection to the world we live in via activity e.g. establishing place through constructing a home or cultivating a garden. We are interested, as occupational therapists, in manipulating activity contexts, social, physical, vocational etc, rather than people. The aim being to meet person/s goals, wants or needs in relation to sustained involvement in meaningful activity (self care, vocational, social). We want our clients and patients to be as independent as possible, with intervention focused on doing 'with', or doing independently, rather than doing 'for'. If we change the context a person operates in it should be for the betterment of and independence of the client, strengthening their day to day supports. As a profession we need to be very mindful of the resources and materials we use or put in place to sustain activity and not burden services or clients.

At the last PEAC meeting in April members were asked to describe what a sustainable occupational therapy practitioner would look like. Their comments included:

• Advocates of human rights/social justice/occupational justice
• Prepared to accept/embrace change
• Therapists consider the work/life balance of their clients and themselves
• Use of leisure and play as primary occupations
• Utilise real environments not simulated
• Value time, both theirs and the clients - making every encounter count
• Understand professionalism
• Ensure equipment is carefully chosen, taking into account client needs, and sustainable practices

The school has set up a Social and Sustainability Committee comprised of both staff and students. The focus of this group is to foster, support and sustain our school community for staff and students as well as to support, introduce and encourage any notions or ideas which encourage sustainable practice within the school.

Notions of sustainability and the management of resources and materials are addressed in a number of stage one courses, notably Adaptive Living Occupation, Humanities for Occupational Therapy, and Fieldwork 2. All of these papers have a focus on humans’ involvement in activity and what sustains this involvement. A constructivist approach is taken here with students often doing or teaching activities.

In Adaptive Living Occupation students start to investigate humans’ involvement, both presently and historically, in activities broadly grouped under the categories of food and horticulture, games, craft and engineering, and design. Students are first involved in activity workshops which look at participating in selected activities under these headings (including two weeks with the Horticulture department).  At all times there is a focus on doing from scratch, making do with limited resources and not wasting resources or materials. In the second half of this course students then have to plan, resource and present six activity workshops to members of the general public with the above focus being prevalent.

In Humanities for Occupational Therapy, students investigate via imaginative literature, film, guest speakers, art and poetry, the commonalities and expressions of human occupations and what sustains them. We consider notions of humans as makers and sustainers of place and the ways we connect and maintain our place in the world through labour, work and play. Students are asked to present on and involve their class in an activity they partake in, considering the history of this activity.

In Fieldwork 2 Students spend 3-4 hours per week for 14 weeks with a community within the Dunedin city region. These communities all have a focus on meeting an occupational need for a selected group of people. Students are expected to fit in to the community as participants and facilitators of meaningful activity. They are expected to develop an understanding of how activities are managed, resourced and promoted, and how this enables the sustenance of these communities and those whom attend.

Other courses include Adaptive Living Technology Stage 1 and Design for the Individual Stage 2:  Look at the design of equipment and accommodation, focusing on concepts of inclusivity. In case of buildings students consider how a home or public building is designed so as to limit the number of physical and other barriers that lead to the need for substantial subsequent adaption, consider designs which allow for the greatest flexibility of use. Equipment is considered in terms of reuse, modularisation etc. Students also look at suppliers of equipment and consider their policies for sustainability.

The School of Occupational Therapy has just completed a sustainability statement for their programme documents, which succinctly integrate the environmental and economic sustainability aspects of occupational therapy, and complement the already very strong social sustainability aspect.

• Core focus of Occupational Therapy is sustainable practice (born out of the arts and crafts movement, focus on ethical treatment of all people)
• Conscious of the activities we do and materials we use
• Offer first and second year courses in human participation in activity
• Focus on ‘doing from scratch’ ; not wasting materials or resources
• Will audit all courses for resource management and social justice
• Linked with PEACs regarding expectations from practitioners – social justice and work-life balance etc
• Has set up a social sustainability committee of staff and students to introduce and encourage sustainable practices within the school.

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