News
Exhaustion formulates recommendations for policies targeting heat and air pollution
06 Dec 2023As an outcome of its policy conference on heat and air pollution, the Exhaustion project formulated seven policy recommendations based on contributions from researchers, policy makers and civil society. These include stronger wildfire management and prevention, including policies that address health risks of air pollution in heat–health action plans, positioning health as driver for mitigation and adaptation action, seeking co-benefits of heat and air pollution policies, encouraging evaluation studies on adaptation strategies, and consideration of equity and fairness.
Global health workers express urgency for action to limit climate-health impacts
05 Dec 2023With powerful voices, health workers from around the world bring testimonies about the impact of climate change on their patients' health and on health systems. At the occasion of the COP28, they call, again, for urgent action to mitigate the impact.
ASPHER launches call for 7-point action on Climate Change and Health
03 Dec 2023The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) issued a statement on the occasion of the first-ever COP health day. It calls for urgent action on climate change and health in seven points to limit the impact of climate change for human populations, ecosystems and the future of the planet.
More than 120 countries endorse COP28 health and climate declaration
02 Dec 2023The ‘COP28 UAE Declaration on Climate and Health’, unveiled by the COP28 Presidency and the World Health Organization (WHO), places health at the heart of climate action and urges accelerated development of climate-resilient, sustainable and equitable health systems. To back the statement, several financial commitments on climate and health were announced. Endorsed by 123 countries, the Declaration, and the COP attendance of several Health Ministers alongside their Environmental colleagues, mark a world first in governments acknowledging the growing health impacts of climate change on communities and countries.
ASPHER organizes European Climate and Health Responder Course
29 Nov 2023The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) organizes, in collaboration with Columbia University, an online flagship course to engage and educate the public health and wider health workforce in climate and health. The aim of the course, which runs on a weekly basis over 10 consecutive weeks, is to facilitate participation and engagement in policy and advocacy related to climate adaptation and mitigation as well as in research that supports decision making across sectors.
The Lancet Countdown on health and climate change publishes 2023 global report
15 Nov 2023The Lancet Countdown, an international research collaboration monitoring the evolving impacts of climate change on health, reveals in its 2023 report again alarming trends in the health impacts of climate change. It warns that these risks could worsen steeply in years to come without action. With health matters gaining prominence in climate change negotiations, the report also highlights new opportunities to deliver health-promoting climate change action and a healthy future for all.
Health leaders are calling on decision makers to protect health at COP28
04 Nov 2023On the occasion of the first ever health day at COP28, global health leaders urge in an open letter the COP presidency and world leaders to prioritize health in climate action at COP, emphasizing the critical link between climate change and health. They call for an accelerated, just, and equitable phase-out of fossil fuels, supported by appropriate financing as alarming impacts of climatic changes and extreme weather events affect many communities, health workers and health systems around the world.
Decision-support tools to build climate resilience against emerging infectious diseases
01 Nov 2023Climate change is one of several drivers of recurrent outbreaks and geographical range expansion of infectious diseases in Europe. Members of the IDAlert consortium, assembled to address the emergence and transmission of climate-sensitive infectious diseases, have proposed an integrated One Health-Climate Risk framework for the production of policy-relevant indicators and decision-support tools. These aim to track climate-induced disease risks and as such reduce the knowledge-to-action gap.
Increased dialogue between climate and health communities needed to act on climate change health impacts
31 Oct 2023As health effects of climate change are felt more and more also in Europe, the urgency to act increases. Health needs to be at the core of both adaptation and mitigation action. That was a key take-away from a recent conference organised by the ENBEL project. The conference contributed to strengthening the needed cross-sector collaboration by bringing together climate change and health researchers, practitioners and decision-makers to protect people’s health and advance the European adaptation agenda.
Are we losing the battle against mosquitoes?
26 Oct 2023According to new research, residents of Attica, Greece will have to get used to Asian tiger mosquitoes almost all year round, in addition to common mosquitoes. While in previous years, tiger mosquito populations disappeared after peaking in summer months, the winter of 2022-2023 saw many tiger mosquitoes. Climate change has made winters warmer and allows mosquitoes to stay around all year, thereby increasing the infection risk for diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and West Nile fever. The presence of the mosquitoes in winter may also occur in other regions of Greece or in other countries.