This policy brief examines climate change as a critical public health issue, with particular focus on its disproportionate impact on populations in economically disadvantaged developing nations. The brief reviews current international policy frameworks — including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement — and proposes targeted reforms to better protect vulnerable communities. It identifies key stakeholders from both public and private sectors whose cooperation is essential for meaningful policy change, and it analyzes both direct and indirect effects of climate change on healthcare delivery systems in developing nations, including heat-related disorders, infectious disease spread, and diminished air quality.
A major — and perhaps even existential — threat to public health has been growing in severity over the past several decades, and the scientific community cautions that the tipping point on climate change may have already been reached. Although the precise causes of climate change remain a matter of political controversy, the effects are already being felt around the world. Citizens of economically disadvantaged developing nations are at a significantly elevated risk of experiencing multiple adverse health-related outcomes as a result. According to the American Public Health Association (APHA), "From exposure to extreme weather and heat waves to worsening air pollution and the spread of insect-borne disease — climate change is a health emergency" (Climate Change, 2023, para. 3).
Climate change affects humans all over the world, but it disproportionately affects people in developing nations who lack the financial and technical resources needed to implement timely and effective responses.
Scientific evidence continues to show that human activities — primarily the burning of fossil fuels — have warmed Earth's surface and its ocean basins, which in turn has continued to impact Earth's climate. This conclusion is based on over a century of scientific evidence forming the structural backbone of today's understanding of the natural world (Scientific Consensus: Earth's Climate Is Warming, 2023). According to NASA, 2016 and 2020 are tied for the warmest years since 1880, continuing a long-term trend of rising global temperatures. Furthermore, the nine most recent years on record have been the hottest ever observed (Scientific Consensus, 2023).
While there are a number of local and national policies addressing climate change, at the global level, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement serve as the primary framework for implementing and administering initiatives designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Adopted in 2015, the Paris Agreement is the most recent international accord that seeks to limit global warming to "well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, with a target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees" (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, 2022, para. 4).
In addition, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — unanimously adopted by the member-states of the United Nations — established 17 targets designed to reduce global social and economic developmental disparities, all of which are dependent on identifying effective solutions to climate change. In this regard, Harris et al. (2022) report that "The [SDGs] recognize the intersectionality between health, education, and economic growth. Furthermore, the SDGs acknowledge that addressing climate change is pivotal to achieving all 17 targets, including the reduction of poverty" (p. S321).
"Recommends stronger targets and financial support mechanisms"
"Identifies public and private sector leaders needed"
"Examines direct and indirect health system consequences"
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