Reimagining Nursing Competencies for Planetary Health: A Scoping Review of Undergraduate Education in the Anthropocene

This research project is a scoping review that investigates how planetary health competencies are currently integrated into undergraduate nursing education worldwide. Conducted against the backdrop of the Anthropocene—an epoch defined by profound human-driven environmental disruption—this study responds to the urgent need for nurses to be equipped with the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to address the health consequences of climate change, biodiversity loss, resource depletion, and other planetary crises. The primary purpose of this review is to map the existing literature on planetary health in nursing curricula, identify key educational frameworks (such as the Planetary Health Education Framework—PHEF), and analyze both barriers and enablers to effective curriculum integration. Specifically, the review addresses four objectives: To identify planetary health competencies currently embedded in undergraduate nursing programs; To examine educational models guiding this integration; To analyze systemic, institutional, and pedagogical barriers (e.g., faculty unpreparedness, rigid curricula, lack of resources); and To highlight promising strategies—including interdisciplinary education, faculty development, and community-based learning—that can strengthen planetary health education. Using a methodological framework adapted from Arksey & O’Malley (2005), Levac et al. (2010), and PRISMA-ScR (2020), we systematically searched five major databases (CINAHL, PubMed, ERIC, Scopus, and Google Scholar) for empirical studies, conceptual papers, policy documents, and existing reviews published between 2000 and 2025. After rigorous screening, 15 relevant studies were included in the final synthesis. Thematic analysis revealed five core themes: Inconsistent integration of planetary health across nursing programs; The value of structured frameworks like PHEF and consensus-based competency lists (e.g., systems thinking, climate literacy); Significant barriers, including insufficient faculty training, curriculum inflexibility, and limited institutional support; The critical role of interprofessional and interdisciplinary education in fostering holistic understanding; and The urgent need for targeted faculty development to build confidence and capacity in teaching planetary health. Although this scoping review has already been completed and accepted for publication, it is being registered retrospectively on the Open Science Framework to promote transparency, reproducibility, and open science practices in nursing education research. Expected outcomes include: A clear evidence base for curriculum designers, nurse educators, and accreditation bodies seeking to embed planetary health into nursing programs; Practical recommendations for overcoming implementation challenges through flexible curricula, collaborative teaching, and sustainability-aligned learning experiences; A foundation for future empirical studies evaluating the impact of planetary health education on student competence, clinical practice, and patient outcomes—particularly in low- and middle-income countries where such research remains scarce. By reimagining nursing education through a planetary health lens, this project contributes to preparing a new generation of nurses who are not only clinically skilled but also ecologically literate, ethically grounded, and ready to lead in the face of global environmental health crises.