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Environment

The global health effects of climate change are not well quantified today and are likely to increase in the future, with lower-income countries bearing the brunt of greater food insecurity, increased rates of chronic respiratory illnesses, and shifts in vector-borne diseases. This section explores the global health nexus between climate change and pollution and the possibilities for a more coherent policy approach to these issues.

Environment

75 Percent

In Minnesota and Saudi Arabia mask use is 76 percent and 75 percent, respectively

Mask Use in MN and Saudi Arabia Mask Use in MN and Saudi Arabia

9M

Premature deaths caused by pollution, in 2015

Premature deaths caused by pollution, in 2015 Premature deaths caused by pollution, in 2015

8

Of the hottest years on record were in last decade

Of the hottest years on record were in last decade Of the hottest years on record were in last decade

118.4

Temperature (°F) in New Delhi amid 2019 heat wave

Temperature (°F) in New Delhi amid 2019 heat wave Temperature (°F) in New Delhi amid 2019 heat wave

$5.7

Health costs from ambient air pollution, trillions

Health costs from ambient air pollution, trillions Health costs from ambient air pollution, trillions

1.5 C

The continued destruction of important ecosystems will leave no chance of keeping warming below 1.5 degrees C

Nature's Unprecedented Role at the Glasgow UN Climate Summit Nature's Unprecedented Role at the Glasgow UN Climate Summit

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Environment
nmate Jimmy Jackson ,63 at the front of the group in the Pecan Field at Angola.

Climate Change and Incarceration
by Cynthia Golembeski, Andrea Armstrong, Ans Irfan, Michael Méndez, Nicholas Shapiro - April 29, 2022

People in prison are vulnerable to extreme temperatures, diseases, and displacement

Environment
a cat sits on top of a pile of plastic waste

Life in Plastic

by Caroline Kantis

A look at how microplastics are infiltrating our oceans, air, and bodies

Environment
A view of a corner of the kitchen with cheerfully painted blue walls, dishes left on the counter, and white lace curtain fluttering in the wind — abandoned by residents amid the Russian war on Ukraine. The Kyiv region, March 2022.

Confronting an Invisible Enemy in Ukraine

by Amanda McClelland

The insidious march of infectious diseases during war 

A close-up photo of the face of Hu Hushen, a 78-year-old former miner, who breathes with the help of extra oxygen at Yangjia Hospital in Zhejiang Province, China, on October 19, 2015.
Environment

China's Attack on a Top Industrial Health Hazard

by Yaming You

How China is bringing the devastating lung disease pneumoconiosis to its knees

A Sadhu or a Hindu holy man robed in pink and orange adjusts a cloth on his face as he walks across a highway on a smoggy morning in New Delhi, India, November 18, 2021
Environment

Heat, Dust, Fever

by Aatmika Nair, Anwesha Maharana, Avanti Andhale, Siddhesh Zadey

India's climate adaptation plan for health should reflect regional and national needs

A medical worker carries green plastic bags of medical waste from a quarantine center in Myanmar during the COVIF-19 pandemic
Environment

Why Health Systems Need a Climate Reckoning

by Luke Shors, Amit Chandra

Tackling waste, CO2 emissions, and energy consumption in medicine

a man rides a horse in phoenix
Environment

Rising from the Ashes

An interview with Phoenix, Arizona, Mayor Kate Gallego

A man from the Yanomamy tribe waits for his surgery at the surgical center at the Cartucho community during a medical expedition in Santa Izabel do Rio Negro, in Amazonas state in northern Brazil, November 8, 2010.
Environment

Climate Change and Global Surgery

by Matthew T. Hey, Ifeoluwa Shoyombo, Elizabeth F. Yates, Geoffrey A. Anderson

Access to surgical care doesn't have to harm the environment and future generations

Sunkirum, a solar-powered canoe, sails on the Pastaza River in the Amazon in Ecuador, where the Achuar Indigenous people have lived for thousands of years.
Environment

Indigenous Land Guardianship Around the World 

An interview with conservationist and Nia Tero founder Peter Seligmann 

Cristina Mamani walks in dried up Lake Poopo, Bolivia—brought on by a warmer, drier climate, say local residents and scientists. Photo taken July 24, 2021.
Environment

A New Era of Climate Action Calls for Climate Doctors

by Stefan Wheat, Jay Lemery

Educating this generation of physicians in climate resilience is critical

a fire is seen blazing over the parthenon in athens
Environment

How Athens Plans to Beat the Heat

An interview with Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis on how Europe's oldest capital will deal with rising temperatures

People walk through Terowongan 4444, built from plastic bottles collected from several rivers around the city in three years, constructed by an Indonesian environmental activist group.
Environment

Indonesia: Why Planetary Health Should Be on the Menu for the G20 Chair

by Renzo R. Guinto, Jemilah Mahmood

President Joko Widodo has the opportunity to champion a "planetary health" approach

Luciano Peas, a member of the Achuar Indigenous community in Ecuador, captains a solar-powered boat.
Environment

Amplifying Indigenous Knowledge

by Mary Brophy Marcus

The podcast "Seedcast" launches its second storytelling season

A farmer burns a sugar cane field at night as local growers try to avoid arrest by authorities who banned on the practice to curb smog in Suphan Buri province, Thailand, on January 20, 2020.
Environment

The Tangled Problem of Sugarcane Burning in Thailand

by Danny Marks

Agricultural burning is causing dangerously high air pollution levels, but stopping it is complicated

A man exercises in a park on a smoggy morning in New Delhi, India, on November 9, 2017.
Environment

Every Breath We Take

by Michael Brauer, Susan Anenberg

Air pollution is a pernicious threat linked to millions of deaths each year