In response to the heatwaves of recent years, Washington state set new rules to protect outdoor workers in July. The policy acts on the link between extreme heat and human health. It requires state employers to provide workers with more frequent breaks, shade and cool drinking water.

As the new safety rules took effect, temperature records were broken globally. Heatwaves swept the Northern Hemisphere from the southern United States and Mexico to China. Temperatures exceeded 50˚C in California’s Death Valley, and wildfires spread across Canada, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain. Overall, July 2023 was Earth’s hottest month on record, claiming a title set only in June 2023.

Throughout July’s extraordinary heat, over 6.5 billion people – around 81% of the world’s population – experienced at least one day of heat made three times more likely by human-caused climate change. But heatwaves aren’t felt evenly across the globe. The parts of the world most exposed to extreme heat also contributed the least to climate change. With so many people living under higher temperatures, what could this mean for their health?

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Heatwaves are one of the deadliest natural hazards. Especially the elderly, infants, those with existing health conditions and outdoor and manual workers are at risk. High temperatures impact people in many ways. It can trigger heat stroke, aggravate mental health, reduce productivity and impact critical services, including energy, agriculture, water, transport and health. Thousands of heat-related deaths occur each year, which is only set to rise with increasing global temperatures. As we’ve seen in the most recent heatwaves, extreme heat also brings with it a risk of wildfires. These events can cause injury and death, force people to evacuate their homes and pollute air across vast areas.

Increasingly, policymakers are looking to tackle the impacts of heat on human health – especially in cities. Known as ‘urban heat islands’, cities trap heat and experience significantly hotter temperatures than surrounding rural areas. Miami was the first to appoint a Chief Heat Officer to raise awareness and help prepare and respond to extreme heat. Since then several cities have followed its lead. Initiatives to keep cities cooler include green corridors like in Medellin, Abu Dhabi’s self-shading tower blocks, painting rooftops white as in New York and planting trees along streets like in Sydney. And these initiatives can have knock-on benefits for health – reducing heat-related illnesses, improving air quality, tackling noise pollution and positively impacting mental health.

But the climate-health connection is much broader. Initiatives to improve health can also be positive for the climate — just think of active transport, eating a predominantly plant-based diet and reducing air pollution. In fact, climate and health can be factored into a range of policy areas like building and infrastructure, work, education, energy and transport. One innovative example is the [solar-covered cycling path](https://electrek.co/2023/05/01/europe-solar-covered-cycling-path/#:~:text=The%20300%2Dmeter%2Dlong%20(,by%20the%20Fraunhofer%20Institute's%20laboratories.) in Freiburg, a city leading the way in green solutions.

Creating green and climate-resilient health systems is another vital aspect. Health systems are vulnerable to climate change but also part of the problem – the sector would be the fifth highest polluter if it were a nation. During COP26, 50 countries made pledges to reduce the climate impact of their health systems. Given its mission to protect and promote health, the healthcare sector must address its carbon footprint. This may involve targeting emissions from healthcare vehicles, energy systems and supply chains.

The climate-health connection is gradually jumping up the political agenda. For example, the upcoming COP28 will host a dedicated Health Day recognising that the climate crisis is also a health crisis. The connection is clear and the solutions are there. The next step is to apply them.

If you could put in place one solution overnight that addresses both health and climate what would it be? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. ⬇️

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