Founded in 2001 by Health Care Without Harm and Practice Greenhealth, CleanMed is the premier annual conference for sustainability champions from across the healthcare sector.
Held each year at an environmentally significant location, it brings together clinicians from more than 1,000 hospitals and healthcare systems – together with advocacy and community leaders, healthcare purchasers, and supply chain companies – to learn about the cost-effective strategies and solutions that are catalyzing real change within our industry.
The robust three-day agenda is designed to inspire action at every level and features a blend of expert-led sessions and workshops, real-world case study clinics, networking and peer exchange opportunities, and even collaborative working sessions where participants can tackle immediate challenges and co-develop ideas to advance progress beyond the conference.
CleanMed is where you will learn about the forward-thinking policies and practices driving global change and get a first look at the latest tools and technology shaping successful healthcare sustainability programs, from greening the operating room to renewable energy, waste mitigation and recycling, and environmentally preferable purchasing.
CleanMed 2027 theme
The collective theme for CleanMed 2027 is how progress happens in healthcare.
Progress begins with people who are willing to lead – individuals working at every level to gain executive support and identify the structures needed to ensure sustainability is a part of how healthcare organizations set priorities and make decisions.
Progress grows through connection and collaboration. Healthcare organizations, businesses, community leaders, and other partners are stronger when they work together and better equipped to accelerate momentum toward their shared goal of a climate-smart, equitable, and resilient future.
Progress is sustained when we learn, adapt, and improve. When we use tangible data and evidence to cut through complexity and increase our collective knowledge, we are able to make better decisions and continuously improve.
Attendee & exhibitor benefits
Practical learning
CleanMed delivers the applicable tools, proven frameworks, and cutting-edge innovations healthcare leaders need to implement urgent and real change.
Brand elevation
CleanMed offers exclusive exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities to maximize brand exposure and connect you with influential decision-makers and leaders.
Deep collaboration
CleanMed unites the healthcare industry by convening leaders with the influence and expertise needed to build healthy, equitable, and resilient communities.
Collective momentum
CleanMed provides a platform where participants work together to tackle challenges, co-develop ideas, and advance progress toward broader societal change.
CleanMed history
Since 2001, there have been more than 20 CleanMed conferences across the United States, including a virtual conference that took place during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our commitment to sustainability encompasses every aspect of event design and execution, and host cities are thoughtfully chosen to support effective and lasting community resilience.
Community-health partnership in action
Place-based initiatives (PBI) build deep, trusting, and equitable partnerships between community stakeholders and health systems to enhance community resilience. Every year, CleanMed takes place in a city directly impacted by the climate crisis to demonstrate how hospitals and health systems can more effectively engage with communities and put policies and procedures in place before an emergency.
CleanMed 2026 coincided with the one-year anniversary of a severe tornado that struck North St. Louis, resulting in widespread damage and loss of life. The community-powered response in the wake of the disaster, led by Action St. Louis and ForTheCultureSTL, offered a compelling real-world model of community-health partnership and served as the foundation for the CleanMed 2026 agenda.
“There is going to be a crisis. We can wait until it happens to get to know each other, or we can work to know each other before.”
Kayla Reed, Action St. Louis co-founder and executive director
Healthcare leaders have a responsibility to protect community health and well-being. Now more than ever, the questions we need to be asking ourselves are: How does healthcare show up for its community before the emergency? What does resilience actually require? Whose voices need to be centered in these decisions?
By spotlighting those places impacted by climate change and building a culture of sustainability, CleanMed serves as a catalyst to healthier, more resilient communities that can survive and thrive in the face of a changing climate.
Past CleanMed locations
CleanMed 2026 | St. Louis, Missouri
CleanMed 2025 | Atlanta, Georgia
CleanMed 2024 | Salt Lake City, Utah
CleanMed 2023 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
CleanMed 2022 | Kansas City, Missouri
CleanMed Connect 2021 | Virtual
CleanMed 2019 | Nashville, Tennessee
CleanMed 2018 | San Diego, California
CleanMed 2017 | Minneapolis, Minnesota
CleanMed 2016 | Dallas, Texas
CleanMed 2015 | Portland, Oregon
CleanMed 2014 | Cleveland, Ohio
CleanMed 2013 | Boston, Massachusetts
CleanMed 2012 | Denver, Colorado
CleanMed 2011 | Phoenix, Arizona
CleanMed 2010 | Baltimore, Maryland
CleanMed 2009 | Chicago, Illinois
CleanMed 2008 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
CleanMed 2006 | Seattle, Washington
CleanMed 2004 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
CleanMed 2002 | Chicago, Illinois
CleanMed 2001 | Boston, Massachusetts
Looking for CleanMed Europe? Follow this link.