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Your gift for people, for planet, for health

 

We're delighted to announce that throughout the month of May, all donations to GCHA will be matched up to $20,000 US, by a generous anonymous donor. Donate in May and your gift will be doubled!

 

Gifts to GCHA help ensure that the trusted voices of the health community - who see first hand the impact that the climate crisis has on people around the world - are heard by governments and decision makers, to drive greater action on climate change, and greater protection for all people’s health. Give now via our online donations page and we will be tracking progress on our website.



APRIL 2022
 

In April, a deadly heat wave has seen temperatures soaring up to 48-49C (118-120F) in Pakistan and 46-47C (115-117F) in India. Unfortunately for Indians and Pakistanis the extreme heat is not over and is likely to get worse, with temperature reaching 50C (122F), threatening people’s lives, and posing especially high risk for the elderly, those who work outdoors, and the poor. Meanwhile in South Africa, more than 400 people were killed and 40,000 displaced by recent floods.

 

Climate scientists have warned that heatwaves are becoming more likely and more intense due to global heating. Following the publication of the sobering recent IPCC Report, which indicated that humanity must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by then end of the decade in order to avoid catastrophic levels of climate-related disasters, over 1,000 scientists from around the world took to the streets in week-long climate protests calling on government agencies to make rapid and deep cuts to greenhouse gas emissions before it’s too late.

 

These extreme weather events threatening lives are all the more unacceptable, as the IPCC report confirmed that we already have the tools and know-how required to limit climate global warming and secure a livable future for all.

 

Strikingly, one of the report’s lead authors noted that there is “untapped mitigation potential to bring down global emissions by between 40 and 70% by 2050 compared to a baseline scenario” if our policies and systems are shifted so that people have the opportunity to make climate-smart choices.   

 

There is increasing public demand for this. Citizens, youth, and Indigenous Peoples have been calling for systems transformation. The health community globally, highlighting the widespread damage that air pollution and the use of fossil fuels do to people’s health and indeed the myriad health threats of climate change, has called for a full and just transition to clean energy, and for the level of response to climate change that is needed to deliver a healthy future.

 

Today, we have solutions available that could halve global emissions in just eight years, as is needed to meet the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5°C. Many solutions are highly affordable, and some, like solar and wind, would even bring cost savings compared to business-as-usual. The health benefits of climate solutions in the energy, food, and transport sectors would save millions of lives per year, addressing some of our most significant non-communicable diseases.

 

A key piece will be wealthy countries delivering the needed financing to low income countries to support emissions reductions, and adapting to climate impacts.

 

In June, national negotiators from every country will meet in Bonn, Germany, laying groundwork for the UN climate negotiations later this year in Egypt (COP27). The annual Bonn meeting doesn’t get all the media attention of a COP, but it sets the agenda for the COP and hammers out significant issues in advance. That makes May a key month to elevate the health argument for climate action to every national government. Op eds, targeted social media, letters to your government – all good ways to make sure the health voice is heard as your national delegation heads to Bonn.

 

With humanity’s climate goals “on life support…in intensive care” and our and our children’s and their children's health in the balance, the time for action is now. 


WHAT YOU CAN DO


~Take this survey to help inform work on food systems, climate and health. The Global Alliance for the Future of Food and partners are conducting a survey to explore food systems knowledge among health sector professionals, and to help identify opportunities for future collaboration. The survey is available in English, French, Spanish, German, and  Portuguese and will be open until Friday May 20th. The findings will be analysed and shared ahead of the High Level Political Forum in July.

 

~The GET Journal of biosecurity & global health is currently calling for submissions. The Africa-based peer-reviewed, open-access journal publishes original research articles and review articles in all areas of biosecurity and one health. The Journal’s editorial board is mainly looking for high-quality research papers, short communications, review articles, short communications, case reports, perspectives (editorials), policy briefs, and clinical images. The journal is published quarterly and freely accessible to researchers and students globally. Guidelines before submission. Manuscripts can be submitted online or via email: submit@getjournal.org

 

~The Caribbean Climate and Health Responders Course is a 10-week free online certificate course committed to providing health care professionals with the knowledge and tools to effectively respond to the climate and health crisis in their local communities throughout the Caribbean region. It runs from April 6th - June 8th, 2022, Wednesdays @ 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM EST. Session recordings will be available for asynchronous view after the live presentations for those unable to attend. More information and registration.

~The Planetary and Global Health Program (PGHP) of the St. Luke’s Medical Center College of Medicine (SLMCCM-WHQM), together with Healthcare Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA), is launching a new certificate course entitled “Climate-Smart Healthcare in Developing Countries". More information and registration.


NEWS IN BRIEF


~Signatories to the Healthy Climate Prescription convened in mid April at the Healthy Climate Prescription: What’s next? event (watch recordings) to strategize health community action in the lead up to COP27 in Egypt. Governments are not yet fully acting upon the knowledge that people’s health is intertwined with our planet’s climate, and that health and equity must become an integral part of every country’s climate policies. May is a key month to elevate these issues, before national climate negotiators meeting in Bonn in June. If you haven’t yet done so: sign the Healthy Climate Prescription letter to add your voice, and to receive tools and updates for taking further action. 

 

~US health community opposes fossil fuel expansion: GCHA member organization, the Medical Society Consortium on Climate &Health, sent a letter to President Biden administration, on the proposed fossil fuel expansion in response to the conflict in Ukraine and high fuel prices, saying “We are seeing the harmful impacts of climate change and air pollution on the health of our patients and communities every day. These impacts are getting worse at an accelerating rate, and they impose significant health and health care costs on American families.”

 

~The Global Climate and Health Alliance is the new host for the Health and Climate Network (HCN) secretariat, and welcomes the HCN Director Alison Doig to the team. We look forward to working closely together, and maximizing the synergies across our efforts so our voices are stronger together. Check out this Q&A with Alison Doig and GCHA’s executive director Jeni Miller.

 

~The University of California Center for Climate, Health and Equity is a major new climate and health academic center, including all of the University of California campuses, with both nationally and internationally focused, policy and practice-oriented research. The virtual launch event is planned for 25-26 May, with an impressive selection of speakers. More information and registration.

 

~This just-published article in the Lancet Regional Health - Americas from members of the Climate and Health Network of Latin America and the Caribbean provides a comprehensive overview of the climate and health issues and opportunities facing the region. If you missed the launch webinar, check out the recording to hear the vibrant discussion article’s key message – "Code Red for the health response in Latin America and the Caribbean: improving people's health through climate action”. The article is also available in Spanish.

 

~One of the outcomes of last year’s UN climate talks was the COP26 Health Commitments - over 50 countries committed to decarbonizing their health systems and/or making them climate resilient. Commitments are a good start, but what will it take to implement them? “The COP26 Health Commitments: A springboard towards environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient health care systems?” published in the Journal of Climate Change and Health takes a look at exactly that.

 

~To address the substantial gap between existing and needed curricular content that reflects the realities of the health impacts of environmental degradation, medical students have developed the Planetary Health Report Card (PHRC), a metric-based tool for evaluating and improving planetary health content in medical schools. More information.

 

~All around the world, unhealthy diets are driving non-communicable diseases (NCDs) while also contributing to climate change and environmental degradation. The World Health Organization's recent report “Food Systems Delivering Better Health” calls for a change in the way we think about food for better health outcomes, and emphasizes the need to make healthy, sustainably-produced foods more affordable and accessible for all. 

 

~If the global health care sector were a country, it would be the fifth-largest greenhouse gas emitter on the planet, according to Health care’s climate footprint: How the health sector contributes to the global climate crisis and opportunities for action, a report by Health Care Without Harm in collaboration with Arup. The report makes the case for a transformation of the health care sector that aligns it with the Paris Agreement goals.

 

~Further making the case to switch from fossil fuel powered vehicles towards greener, healthier options, GCHA Board member organization, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment released “Mobilizing Evidence: Activating change on traffic-related air pollution health impacts” in English and French. The report outlines the myriad health risk of traffic related air pollution based on a summary of nearly 1,200 research studies from around the world.

 

~On 25 April, the Future Earth Global Secretariat Hub South Asia conducted a webinar titled ‘Fortifying Health in South Asia: A focus on nutrition, coastal risk and urban heat’. Academics, public officials and development experts from three countries discussed topics including the initiatives taken under the National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health to make the health sector climate-resilient and tackle malnutrition, coastal health risks and urban heat in their respective countries along with identifying major problems and potential solutions. Further reading


HEALTH VOICES

 

“When it comes to debating climate change, the key argument is not “the economy, stupid”, or the decline in biodiversity. The answer is to focus on pollution and its impact on everyone’s health.” - Phillip Inman is economics editor of the Observer and an economics writer for the Guardian. He is the author of Managing Your Debt, a Which? essential guide; and the Guardian e-book The Financial Crisis: How Did We Get Here?

“We are building a cross-sector community to break down the silos, to call for fair and just transition to a zero carbon and healthy world, to jointly develop policy, and to advocate together at key global events such as COP27 which will be in Egypt later this year.”  Alison Doig, Health and Climate Network (HCN) Director

“Would you prefer your planet blue or well-cooked?” - Jennifer Lechelle, Registered Nurse, Cairns, Australia.

“In our work to advance and protect public health, we understand the importance of affordable energy. High energy costs can force families to forgo other health essentials including nutritious food and medical care; however, responding to high energy prices with actions that benefit the fossil fuel industry will neither help our families nor protect their health.” - Medical Society Consortium on Climate & Health, letter to US President Biden


MARK YOUR DIARY


Through May 20: Global Alliance for the Future of Food’s survey will be open until Friday May 20 and is available in English, French, Spanish, German, and  Portuguese. The findings will be analyzed and shared ahead of the High Level Political Forum in July. 

 

May 22-28: 75th World Health Assembly, Geneva (Switzerland)

 

May 23:  5:30 PM - 7:00 PM CEST - Event: “Pan-African Multilateral Partnership on Climate Change and Health”, alongside World Health Assembly (WHA 75), at the Hotel Intercontinental in Geneva. Hosted by the Government of Kenya and a coalition of Civil Societies and private sector actors including GCHA, Amref Health Africa, Pathfinder International, Afridvev, and the Kenya Climate Change Innovation Centre. The event will focus on pan-African collaboration to advance global efforts to adapt and mitigate against climate change, and the effects on universal health coverage with women and youth at the center. Event details to follow. (Virtual attendance TBC.)

 

May 25-26:  Virtual launch of the University of California Center for Climate, Health and Equity. More information and registration

 

May 26: @3:00 PM UK - Healthy NDCs in 2022. Register here

 

Until June 8: The Caribbean Climate and Health Responders Course will run from April 6 - June 8, 2022, Wednesdays @ 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM EST. Session recordings will be available. More information and registration.

 

June 2-3: Stockholm +50 Conference “Stockholm+50: a healthy planet for the prosperity of all – our responsibility, our opportunity,”. GCHA will co-host a virtual affiliated event - stay tuned for details.

 

June 6-16: UNFCCC Bonn Climate Change Conference, Bonn (Germany). This key technical meeting is part of the UNFCCC COP preparation process, and is where much of the agenda for the COP27 will be set, and essential groundwork laid. 

 

June 23: @ 3:00 PM UK -  Big meetings, big expectations - a report back on Stockholm +50 and the June UNFCCC intersessional - Register here

 

 

*** The GCHA newsletter is now available in Spanish ***

 

Subscribe here if you wish to receive the Spanish version (scroll down to the bottom of the page and choose your option, you’ll need to unsubscribe from the English version if you don’t wish to receive both). 


 

GET MORE INVOLVED

 

Health organizations are invited to become members of the Global Climate and Health Alliance.

 

Individual health professionals & workers are invited to sign up as a Climate and Health Champion, to receive advocacy alerts, policy & advocacy information, and tools, and to share updates about your advocacy efforts.

 

Donate! Your gift – of any amount – helps GCHA elevate the voices of the health community to drive climate policies that protect all people’s health and wellbeing. 

 

Contribute during our May match-funding challenge, “Your gift, for people, for planet, for health” and your donation will be matched by a generous anonymous donor (up to a total of $20,000)!

 

 

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