The Future Of Our Planet Linked To The Health Of Its People

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From the 14 June 2011 Medical News Today article

A major new research project will examine how policies deProfessor Clive Sabel, from the University of Exeter’s Geography department and European Centre for Environment and Human Health (ECEHH) and leader of the project, said: “If we don’t start reducing greenhouse gas emissions from cities, the planet will get hotter and hotter, but every policy to tackle those emissions has a potentially profound effect on human health.

“That could be positive or negative, so in order to make that assessment we have to look at all the evidence and relate that to the on-the-ground technical, social, economic, political and cultural realities. This research aims to integrate data from a large variety of sources to inform key policy decisions to ensure city life is a healthy, positive experience that is sustainable for the future of our planet.”

The European Centre for Environment and Human Health (ECEHH), part of the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry, will also be taking part in the research. Professor Lora Fleming, Director of the centre, said: “One of the unique strengths of this study is the cross cultural comparisons of approaches across many nations, both developing and developed. Climate change is a global environment and human health issue which must be addressed on both local and international levels. This study will help provide some of these future approaches.”

The research will look ahead to 2030 and 2080 to see what the impact would be if various carbon reduction policies would be, particularly in context of a warming climate where issues such as heat stress and water availability will become more prevalent.
signed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions could impact human health.

Led by the University of Exeter the three year 3.5 million Euros programme of research will involve experts from 17 institutions across eight countries. …

…Professor Clive Sabel, from the University of Exeter’s Geography department and European Centre for Environment and Human Health (ECEHH) and leader of the project, said: “If we don’t start reducing greenhouse gas emissions from cities, the planet will get hotter and hotter, but every policy to tackle those emissions has a potentially profound effect on human health.

“That could be positive or negative, so in order to make that assessment we have to look at all the evidence and relate that to the on-the-ground technical, social, economic, political and cultural realities. This research aims to integrate data from a large variety of sources to inform key policy decisions to ensure city life is a healthy, positive experience that is sustainable for the future of our planet.”

The European Centre for Environment and Human Health (ECEHH), part of the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry, will also be taking part in the research. Professor Lora Fleming, Director of the centre, said: “One of the unique strengths of this study is the cross cultural comparisons of approaches across many nations, both developing and developed. Climate change is a global environment and human health issue which must be addressed on both local and international levels. This study will help provide some of these future approaches.”

The research will look ahead to 2030 and 2080 to see what the impact would be if various carbon reduction policies would be, particularly in context of a warming climate where issues such as heat stress and water availability will become more prevalent.

Related articles

• Country By Country Analysis Of Years Left Until Science-demanded Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions (chimalaya.org)
• Climate change education can still be part of a slimmed-down curriculum (guardian.co.uk)
• Human Health Project: Getting Feedback on Cases (scienceroll.com)
• Can cities lead the way in cutting greenhouse gas emissions? [del.icio.us] (guardian.co.uk)

Cities and Climate Change: Global Report on Human Settlements [pdf]

The UN Global Report on Human Settlements  is geared to planners and others interested in exploring on how cities worldwide will be affected by climate change in the near and far future.

The 62 page document shows linkages between urbanization and climate change, arguing that  “local action is indispensable for the realization of national climate change commitments agreed through international negotiations.”

“[The report]  illustrates the significant contribution of urban areas to climate change while at the same time highlighting the potentially devastating effects of climate change on urban populations.

It reviews policy responses, strategies and practices that are emerging in urban areas to mitigate and adapt to climate change, as well as their potential achievements and constraints.

In conclusion, the report argues that urban areas have a pivotal role in both climate change mitigation and adaptation and identifies strategies and approaches for strengthening this role.

Related Articles

• American Teens Know Less About Climate Change Than Their Parents (treehugger.com)
• Nature Magazine on the Linkage Between Climate Change Perceptions and Proposed Policy Solutions (bigthink.com)
• Climate change targets developing world’s cities (scientificamerican.com)
• Climate change psychology: Coping and creating solutions (eurekalert.org)
• The climate change conference no one is talking about – Rooted (rajcairnsreport.wordpress.com)
• World’s Cities Unprepared for Climate Change (livescience.com)
• You: Study links ozone hole to climate change all the way to the equator (labspaces.net)

Climate Change Psychology, Coping And Creating Solutions

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From the 19 April 2011 Medical News Today article

Psychologists are offering new insight and solutions to help counter climate change, while helping people cope with the environmental, economic and health impacts already taking a toll on people’s lives, according to a special issue of American Psychologist, the American Psychological Association’s flagship journal.

[The May-June issue is not yet online, as of 19 April 2011, the articles are by paid subscription only.
For information on how to get medical/scientific articles for free or at low cost, click here]

Climate change “poses significant risks for and in many cases is already affecting a broad range of human and natural systems,” according to the May-June issue’s introductory article, “Psychology’s Contributions to Understanding and Addressing Global Climate Change.” The authors call upon psychologists to increase research and work closely with industry, government and education to address climate change.

The role psychologists can play may be different from what many people expect. “Psychological contributions to limiting climate change will come not from trying to change people’s attitudes, but by helping to make low-carbon technologies more attractive and user-friendly, economic incentives more transparent and easier to use, and information more actionable and relevant to the people who need it,” wrote Paul C. Stern, PhD, of the National Research Council.

In the United States, “motor vehicle use and space heating are the most significant causes of climate change and therefore the most important targets for emissions reduction,” according to Stern’s article, “Contributions of Psychology to Limiting Climate Change.”….

…The issue updates and builds upon the findings and recommendations of APA’s 2009 Task Force report, Psychology and Global Climate Change: Addressing a Multi-faceted Phenomenon and Set of Challenges

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Related Articles

• Teens Have Mixed Understanding of Climate Change (livescience.com)

Climate Change Threatens Global Security, Warn Medical And Military Leaders

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Climate Change Threatens Global Security, Warn Medical And Military Leaders

From the April 5 2011 Medical News Today item

Medical and military leaders have come together today to warn that climate change not only spells a global health catastrophe, but also threatens global stability and security.

“Climate change poses an immediate and grave threat, driving ill-health and increasing the risk of conflict, such that each feeds upon the other,” they write in an editorial published on bmj.com today [full text]. Their views come ahead of an open meeting on these issues to be held at the British Medical Association on 20 June 2011….

 

 

Related Articles

• Doctors urged to take climate leadership role (guardian.co.uk)
• Prepare for long-term climate change impacts on food production: FAO (hindu.com)
• Climate change to bring more heatwaves (news.theage.com.au)
• Climate change sceptics: just regular folk, in denial (newscientist.com)
• Nonprofits examine climate-change roles (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

Anesthetics Could Add to Global Warming

 

Using desflurane to put a patient to sleep for an hour of surgery equivalent to driving up to 470 miles, a study found.
The news item may be found at Anesthetics Could Add to Global Warming.