Climate change is possibly the greatest global challenge of the 21st century, and it is directly harming human, animal, and ecosystem health.
ASPPH and our members are committed to protecting populations’ health by reducing the causes of climate change and adapting to its impacts.
ASPPH established the Task Force on Climate Change and Health to develop recommendations for collective action to reduce the impacts of climate change on population health. This framework lays out principles and recommendations for ASPPH and schools and programs of public health to act through education and training, research, practice, and policy and advocacy, while approaching all issues through the lens of social justice and taking advantage of interdisciplinary collaborations and partnerships at all levels of society.
Please also join us for the framework launch webinar from 2:00 – 3:00 PM ET on Wednesday, October 26 featuring an expert panel that will discuss some of the challenges and opportunities it identifies.
Education
Educating and training public health students and professionals, as well as decision-makers and the public on the health impacts of climate change and how they can be reduced.
Align
Improve alignment of the public health and healtcare sectors, including education and training of public health practitioners and healthcare providers, capitalizing on opportunities for cross-disciplinary efforts.
Research
Conduct research into the impacts of climate change on health and how those impacts are disproportionately experienced by certain populations.
Innovate
Innovate and create effective, adaptive approaches to prevent adverse impacts of climate change on health.
Communicate
Employ public health communications science and expertise to create more effective approaches to inform about health consequences of climate change and options for addressing climate change.
Empower
Engage with and empower communities, especially those heavily impacted by climate change, to mitigate and adapt to those impacts.
Advocate
Advocate for policies that will help to reduce the health impacts of climate change , especially for those most at risk.
Champion
Champion social and environmental justice.
Convene
Convene across disciplines and sectors to foster cross-training and collaboration.
Partner
Partner with communities, businesses, non-profit organizations, and government agencies at local, national, regional, and global levels to achieve the greatest impact.
Why climate change and health? There are countless reasons why, and in what ways, we must come together to address this urgent issue. Click on the video above to hear from our Climate Change and Health Task Force co-chairs, Deans Lynn Goldman (GW) and Jonathan Samet (Colorado), about the problems and potential solutions, as well as some words of perspective and hope from our President and CEO, Dr. Laura Magaña.
Follow us on social media to learn more about the health impacts of climate change, plus relevant news and events.
Dorothy Biberman directs priority initiatives for the Office of the President and CEO, including ASPPH's global engagements and climate change and health initiatives.
Dorothy A. Biberman, MPH, CPH
Director of Global Engagement and Executive Initiatives
Rebecca Fournier manages climate change and health initiatives and provides support on global engagements.
Rebecca S. Fournier, MPH
Manager, Climate Change and Health