Identifying Opportunities to Reduce the Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations

Benchmark - Policy Brief: Climate Change and Vulnerable Populations

1. Describe the public health issue. Include the following information:

Affected population. 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 controversial, 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. For instance, 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).

What level does it occur. Climate change affects humans all over the world, but it disproportionately affects people in developing nations who lack the financial and technical resources that are needed to implement timely and effective responses.

Evidence about climate change. Scientific evidence continues to show that human activities (primarily the human burning of fossil fuels) have warmed Earth’s surface and its ocean basins, which in turn have continued to impact Earth’s climate. This is based on over a century of scientific evidence forming the structural backbone of today's civilization (Scientific Consensus: Earth's Climate Is Warming, 2023). According to NASA, 2016 and 2020 are tied for the warmest year since 1880, continuing a long-term trend of rising global temperatures. On top of that, the nine most recent years have been the hottest (Scientific Consensus, 2023)

2. Discuss how the public health issue is addressed by the current policies

While there are number 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 that are 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) that were unanimously adopted by the member-states of the United Nations established 17 targets that are designed to reduce global social and economic developmental disparities and 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).

3. Proposed changes to existing policies.

Some of the steps that are required to initiate appropriate policy change to protect vulnerable populations from the devastating effects of climate change included strengthening the target goals of the UNFCC and accelerating the timeline for their completion. In addition, another step that could strengthen the UNFCCC would be to provide more direct financial and technical support for vulnerable communities. In fact, this approach has a number of advantages, including most especially delivering assistance where it is needed the most. This strategy could include the provision of funding for adaptation measures such as training initiatives and infrastructure projects, as well as supporting research and development of technologies that can help communities of vulnerable populations better adapt to the dynamic impacts of climate change.

In addition, strengthening the UNFCCC could be achieved by ensuring that the unique views and needs of vulnerable populations are more fully considered in the decision-making process concerning climate change planning. This step could involve establishing novel strategies for vulnerable populations to more actively participate in the development and implementation of climate policies that affect them directly, as well as ensuring that their human rights and needs are taken into account in the distribution of economic resources and technical support.

4. Identification of the necessary stakeholders required to initiate policy change (government officials, administrator) and explain the importance of their role, such as budgeting or funding.

If it is not already too late, addressing climate change in meaningful ways is a massively expensive enterprise. Both public and private sector leaders in affluent nations are necessary stakeholders in this endeavor. In the public sector, lawmakers are required to allocate the requisite funds for the above and other changes that are designed to strengthen existing policies in ways that protect vulnerable populations. Likewise, business leaders can help coordinate the transfer of technologies that are needed by developing nations to mount effective responses to the health-related problems that are caused by climate change.

5. Discussion concerning the impact on the health care delivery system

Depending on the specific locations that are affected, there are both direct and indirect impacts climate change can have on the health care delivery system of a developing nation. Some of the more common effects include the need to respond to growing numbers of heat-related disorders (Ebi et al., 2019) as well as the potential for warmer temperatures and increased amounts of rain to spread rare infectious, so-called “orphan” diseases where the costs of developing treatments is not cost effective for big pharmacy corporations (Lloyd & Chalabi, 2021). The indirect impacts of climate change on vulnerable populations include an elevated prevalence of respiratory diseases that are attributable to diminished air quality (Bahrami et al., 2022).