Do No Harm: Reflections on Healthcare is a public-facing exhibition advocating for planetary health consciousness; a concept which acknowledges the intrinsic link between human health and natural systems. By interrogating the harms of current healthcare practices and propagating known solutions, this project advocates for the urgent transition to a model of health which is socially and ecologically regenerative.
Guided by the First Nations knowledge systems crucial to sustainable reform, this exhibition highlights stories of resilience, innovation and the interdisciplinary collaboration required to progress. Further, DNH will include a series of academic events and workshops for deeper engagement of attendees throughout the week. Programme TBA.
Participating artists: Adedolapo Boluwatife, Tanishka Brahmanand, Kaanchi Chopra, Frankey Chung, Maria Koijck, Edwina Green, Professor David Karoly, Janet Laurence and Dr Bob Smith.
Creative Producers: Tanishka Brahmanand and Deborah Hart.
This project is the culmination of Dr Brahmanand’s Wattle Fellowship Action Project, supported by Australian charities CLIMARTE and Medical Pantry. DNH will also form the basis of an impact evaluation exploring Artivism as an intervention in shaping planetary health conscious attitudes and inspiring climate action.
Officially co-hosted by: CLIMARTE and The Wattle Fellowship
Supporting partners: Medical Pantry, Doctors for the Environment and The Blackbird Foundation.
DO NO HARM: reflections on healthcare
Location: No Vacancy Gallery, 34-40 Jane Bell Lane (off Russell St)
Level 3, QV Building, Melbourne CBD
Open for public viewing: 27th October 2025 – 1st November 2025
Opening Event: 6pm 30th October 2025
Proudly supported by:
Artists
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![A close-up photo of tangled, white, branch-like structures forming an abstract pattern.]()
Dr Tanishka Brahmanand
Project Lead, Creative Producer and Artist
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![A black and white symmetrical abstract image resembling a butterfly or insect with outstretched wings, created with mirrored silhouettes of plant branches and leaves on a white background.]()
Kaanchi Chopra
Artist
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![A woman lying on a wooden floor surrounded by numerous medical supplies and equipment arranged in concentric circles, with her arms outstretched.]()
Maria Koijck
Artist
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![Collection of glass jars filled with preserved sea creatures, including fish, coral, and shells, arranged on a reflective surface.]()
Janet Laurence
Artist
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![Multiple black fabric shapes with spiral patterns hanging from black ribbons and a wooden stick against a white background.]()
Edwina Green
Artist
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![Various flower petals, tubes, and medical connectors scattered on a surface.]()
Frankey Chung
Artist
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![Painting of two surgeons in an operating room performing surgery, wearing scrubs, masks, and gloves, with surgical instruments and a screen showing an internal view of a patient's body.]()
Dr Bob Smith
Anaesthetist, Artist
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![A person with a shirtless torso and blue shorts carries a large bundle of plastic bottles on their shoulder, set against a cloudy sky.]()
Adedolapo Boluwatife
Artist
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![A man in a suit and tie standing outdoors at night with leafless trees and a dark cloudy sky in the background.]()
Prof Emeritus David Karoly
Climate Scientist, Artist
The Team
The Team
our healthcare system is estimated to be responsible for over 7% of Australia’s CO2 emissions (1). Across the system, 30% of healthcare is considered low value or wasteful, and 10% actually harmful (2). Now more than ever, we must grapple with the reality of a system which is both unequipped to tackle the consequences of climate change and inadvertently worsening it.
[1] Malik, A., Lenzen, M., McAlister, S., et al. (2018). The carbon footprint of Australian health care. Lancet Planetary Health, 2(1), e27–e35.
[2] Braithwaite, J., Glasziou, P., & Westbrook, J. (2020). The three numbers you need to know about healthcare: the 60-30-10 Challenge. BMC Medicine, 18(1), 102.
Artivism
This project posits art as a tool with the power to accelerate climate action amidst this ecological emergency
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Art has long been used to provoke, advocate and activate the power of the masses. Artivism can be defined as a a hybrid form of art and activism in which art is utilized as a means towards change and social transformation (Vico et al., 2018). Art has long been used to provoke, advocate and activate the power of the masses.
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In this case, art offers a platform where healthcare professionals, artists and consumers are invited to question their personal values concerning wasteful healthcare, how this system has divorced human health from the natural systems around us, and how we can do better. Importantly, it offers a medium unbridled by the institutional barriers which typically hinder open dialogue and creativity.