Event

Find Dr Ana Bonell’s presentation here

 

Global warming respects no borders: it affects all of us, all the time. It poses an increasing challenge to both human and planetary health.  Our planet faces a continued decline in natural resources, and we face greater food insecurity and malnutrition in all its forms.  Increased heat and water stress lead to the proliferation of pests and diseases. Deforestation leads to the destruction of natural habitats as well as global warming. Without effective mitigation of current emission rates,  predictions indicate that global temperatures are likely to rise by around 4°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100 (Bonell et al., 2020).

Environmental consequences of global warming – landslides, floods, fires and famines – are well documented. They are made more severe by our current agri-food systems, which are described by the FAO as a ‘top contributor’ to both climate change and biodiversity loss. The combined effect means that we are hurtling towards catastrophe. Indeed, those in the majority world who cause the least climate are already suffering climate catastrophes.  Time is running out for us all. In our inter-connected world, policy-makers and industrialists in the global north cannot continue to act as though global warming is not ‘their’ problem.  So we’re asking: isn’t it time we act now and act decisively to mitigate the impact of ever-increasing heat on the health of our planet and its people?

Join us on 21 July from 1-2.15 pm (BST) for an event in conjunction with experts from the Centre on Climate Change and Planetary Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Together we will explore what we can – and must – do to stop our planet and ourselves from burning up.

This is a hybrid event. You can register to join us either online or in person. Please note that in-person attendance is on a ‘first come, first served ‘ basis to comply with room capacity/health & safety. In-person registration will close once room capacity is reached.

 

About the Speakers:

Dr. Peninah Murage has extensive experience working in public health policy.  Her research focuses on the impact of environmental changes on health and the evaluation of health and societal impacts of climate change adaptation and mitigation solutions, with a specific focus on nature-based and land restoration solutions. Her research examines the health effects of changes in the environment such as in modelling the impact of climate change and assessing the impact of adaptation and mitigation solutions to promote the rapid transition to a zero-carbon future. She is particularly interested in unpicking the complex interdependencies between people and natural ecosystems and in identifying cross-disciplinary approaches to simultaneously promote health, safeguard natural ecosystems and achieve sustainable development. She is co-module organiser for the Environmental Health and Sustainable Development MSc module at the LSHTM and until recently was co-Deputy Director of the LSTHM Centre on Climate Change and Planetary Health.

About the Moderator: