Oral Health Within Planetary Boundaries: Approaches and Strategies for Human Security, Health Emergency Preparedness and Response and a Climate-Resilient Future

The context of oral health services and care is shifting rapidly with uneven and faltering energy transitions, increasing critical infrastructure and resource stress with risks cascading across ecosystems, economies, and societies. Concurrently, artificial intelligence and digital transformation, materials science innovations, and shifts in patient expectations are transforming clinical models and education. There will be direct and indirect consequences for oral health of people across the life course and for populations. Together these are challenging and reshaping the notion of a secure, predictable and stable landscape for oral health services and care, and dental practice.

These dynamics will require a fresh and critical look at near-term options that will shape the future. The World Health Organisation Bangkok Declaration sets out an agenda to promote preventive, less invasive, climate resilient, environmentally sustainable and safe oral healthcare that are aligned with UN initiatives on climate change and planetary health. This will help identify positive tipping points that advance a resilient and sustainable model for oral health, where opportunities for beneficial changes become self-sustaining and harms being mitigated. This should include preparing for, responding to and recovering from emergencies, natural disasters & crises; protective prevention by adopting and implementing a planet-centric, health promoting and prevention focused model of oral health services and care; safeguarding planetary and human health for future generations through a holistic approach to the use of natural resources and waste management to ensure no breach of planetary health boundaries; and encouraging foresight for anticipatory and future-oriented culture and practices.

This collection situates oral health within salutogenic approach to oral health that focuses on factors promoting health and well-being, rather than on what causes disease, emphasising systems modelling, One Health linkages, and policy integration. Building on the UN agendas, it convenes transdisciplinary evidence to inform climate-smart service design, materials stewardship, waste minimisation, and virtual care, advancing SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation for All), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the goals).

This Research Topic aims to articulate and advance a rigorous, systems-based, cross-sectoral roadmap for human security, health emergency preparedness and response and a climate-resilient future that delivers Oral Health for All.

We seek to:
(1) quantify planetary health and climate-related risks to oral health outcomes, workforce, services and care infrastructure
(2) evaluate protective prevention-focused models of oral healthcare that promote health, reduce disease burden and environmental footprints
(3) optimize materials, procurement, and waste pathways toward circularity and lower toxicity and eco-toxicity
(4) leverage artificial intelligent and digital technologies and virtual oral healthcare to enable distributed, equitable, and low-carbon emission and footprint services
(5) align education, financing, and policy to accelerate implementation and transformation.

We invite contributions that integrate recent advances in computational systems modelling, life-cycle assessment (LCA), geospatial risk mapping, implementation science, and health technology assessment.

Studies linking oral conditions with systemic diseases under changing environmental exposures are encouraged, as are analyses of policy instruments, reimbursement reforms, and public–private partnerships. By synthesising evidence across clinical science, public health, engineering, and social sciences, the collection will provide decision-ready insights for researchers, practitioners, industry, and policymakers to mainstream oral health in climate and sustainability agendas and to operationalise DOC care within planetary boundaries.

Scope includes, but is not limited to:
• Systems modelling of oral health under climate stressors; scenario analyses and risk stratification
• LCA and environmental performance of care pathways, materials, devices, and waste management
• One Health linkages among oral microbiome, environmental exposures, and systemic disease
• Artificial intelligence and digital technologies and virtual care models for resilient, low-carbon, community-engaged services
• Policy, financing, and governance frameworks that integrate oral health into climate and health-in-all-policies.
• Education innovations that embed systems thinking, sustainability, and equity (SDG 3 and SDG 4)
• Public health interventions addressing vulnerable populations, water stress, and disaster preparedness and response
• Strengthen health emergency preparedness and response, including oral health in national emergency preparedness and response plans, ensuring safe and uninterrupted essential oral health services during health emergencies or other humanitarian crises
• Human security approaches and strategies that focus on the protection and empowerment of people by addressing a wide range of threats and hazards, including economic, food, water, health, ecosystem and environmental insecurity

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Registered Report
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Oral health, planetary health, climate-resilient healthcare, systems modelling, sustainable dentistry, health emergency preparedness

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.