6.E. Round table: Governance and diplomacy of climate health adaptation: roles for public health community

Abstract Planetary health is the health of human civilization and the state of the natural systems on which it depends. (The Lancet commission on planetary health). Climate change puts planetary health under considerable strain. Climate health adaptation is defined as ‘designing, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating strategies, policies and programs to manage the risks of climate-relevant health outcomes' (WHO 2014). This workshop focuses on the perspective of governance, focusing on three basic coordination issues. Firstly, since climate health adaptation is a relatively new issue, it has not (yet) been organised into laws and regulations assigning clear responsibilities, capacities and resources. As a result, proponents turn to the judiciary for litigation of nation states' compliance with international agreements. Secondly, since climate problems m anifest themselves across national borders and continents, there is a need for multilevel governance that requires both local community-based action as well as supranational agreements in resolutions and programs (= vertical coordination). Thirdly, since climate change affects many environmental and social health determinants, such as food systems, migration and water management, climate health adaptation requires a Whole of Society/HiAP approach. Necessary action extends far beyond the health system across different policy sectors, large and small businesses, civil society organisations as we ll as community initiatives...
Source: The European Journal of Public Health - Category: General Medicine Source Type: research