Taking action against climate change will benefit health and advance health equity in the Americas

Abstract

Recently, the Americas, like the rest of the world, have seen an upswing in extreme weather events as a result of climate change. The numbers of injuries and deaths resulting from these disasters have been well documented, but those numbers alone do not fully capture the myriad ways in which climate change has affected and will continue to affect human health. To date, the health sector has been the focus of national, regional, and global policy changes to reduce the possible direct and indirect effects of climate change. The emphasis on protecting human health must continue and increase as we move forward. In 2019 the European Academies’ Science Advisory Council (EASAC) produced their report “The imperative of climate action to protect human health in Europe”. Subsequently, the InterAcademy Partnership (IAP) sponsored the other regional networks (Africa, the Americas, and Asia) to prepare similar documents. In this report, prepared by the Inter-American Network of Academies of Sciences (IANAS), we consider how, through adaptation and mitigation, we can combat the negative effects of climate change on health, and also how we can reduce the ways in which the health system itself contributes to the problem of climate change. As we have seen with the COVID-19 pandemic, the effects of climate change disproportionately impact the health of Indigenous Peoples, aging populations, children, women and girls, those living in challenging socioeconomic settings, and geographically vulnerable populations. Their voices must be heard, and as we advance with preparedness and robust response planning it is essential that issues of equity and social justice are incorporated. This publication is one of several prepared for a project by the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and the InterAcademy Partnership. Funding was provided by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. We would like to thank all those scholars who contributed to this volume either as authors or reviewers, as well as IAP, IANAS, and RSC secretariats for their unwavering support during the preparation and diffusion of this report. Helena Nader Jeremy N. McNeil Sherilee Harper IANAS Co-chair IANAS Co-chair Project leader The InterAcademy Partnership (IAP) has more than 140 national, regional, and global member academies who work together to support the vital role of science in seeking evidence-based solutions to the world’s most challenging problems. The Inter-American Network of Academies of Sciences (IANAS) is a regional network with 24 national or regional academies that was created to support cooperation towards the strengthening of science and technology as a tool for advancing research and development, prosperity, and equity in the Americas.