Climate change is a fundamental threat to human health, affecting the physical environment, natural and human systems, social and economic conditions, and health systems. It is a threat multiplier, undermining and potentially causing severe consequences such as rising sea levels, rising temperatures, and increased precipitation. The scientific evidence is unequivocal: climate change is a threat to human wellbeing and the health of the planet.
Climate change impacts human health in both direct and indirect ways, undermining the environmental and human health systems. Extreme heat waves, rising sea levels, changes in precipitation resulting in flooding and droughts, and intense hurricanes can directly impact human health. More than 200 medical journals are warning that climate change is the “greatest threat” to global public health, urging world leaders to cut emissions and develop mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Heat stress can diminish water and grasslands for grazing, causing declining crop yields and affecting livestock. Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity, and health professionals worldwide are already responding to the health effects. Polluted air and rising temperatures are linked to health effects ranging from increased heart attacks and strokes to the spread of infectious diseases.
Human activities are the largest contributor to global warming, with CO2 produced by human activities being the largest contributor. By 2020, its concentration in the atmosphere had risen to 48 above its pre-industrial levels. Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century, affecting health through direct impacts such as air pollution, disease, extreme weather, and worsening air quality.
📹 Causes and Effects of Climate Change | National Geographic
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What is the greatest threat to the environment is human?
Human-induced climate change is the world’s largest threat to the environment and societies, with the poorest countries paying the heaviest price. Climate change negatively impacts human rights, including life, health, food, development, self-determination, water and sanitation, work, adequate housing, and freedom from violence, sexual exploitation, trafficking, and slavery. Ian Fry, UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change, stated that developed economies and major corporations are inaction in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions, leading to demands for “climate reparations” for losses incurred. The G20 members account for 78% of emissions over the last decade.
What is the biggest environmental threat?
Climate change is the largest threat to American wildlife, wild places, and communities. It poses a significant long-term threat, requiring collective action to prevent its root causes and cope with its impacts. Threats include diseases, pollution, climate inequity, and a warming climate. The National Wildlife Federation is united in addressing these challenges and protecting wildlife and their habitats. As the nation’s population grows, the environment faces increasing strain.
The Federation is fighting for more assertive policies to address modern threats, climate inequity, and restoring healthy wildlife populations. Actions range from curbing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing carbon sequestration to protecting at-risk human and wildlife populations from toxic chemicals, contaminants, and non-native invaders. Innovative ways to solve current problems and prevent new threats are also being sought.
What is the biggest threat to your health?
Air pollution and climate change pose significant health threats to the world, with 90% of people breathing polluted air daily. In 2019, air pollution was deemed the greatest environmental risk to health by the World Health Organization (WHO). Other health challenges include vaccine-preventable diseases, drug-resistant pathogens, obesity, physical inactivity, environmental pollution, and climate change.
To address these issues, the World Health Organization launched the 13th General Programme of Work in 2019, aiming to reach a triple billion target: 1 billion more people benefiting from universal health coverage, 1 billion more protected from health emergencies, and 1 billion more enjoying better health and well-being.
What is the most immediate threat to human health?
Nuclear weapons detonation produces heat, shock waves, radiation, and electromagnetic pulses that can alter Earth’s climate, wipe out entire populations, level cities, and devastate the environment. These weapons also produce radioactive contamination that remains active for millennia, causing cancers and other illnesses that can persist across generations. The environmental consequences of nuclear war, including severe climate disruption, can lead to global famine and, in the most extreme case, human extinction.
No meaningful medical or disaster relief response is possible to the detonation of nuclear weapons. Since the adoption of the Treaty, new data on climate effects has been published, highlighting the impacts of nuclear conflicts on climate, nutrition, and food security. The world has not been this close to nuclear war since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Diplomacy is urgently needed to remove the danger of nuclear escalation in the current crisis and progress to negotiations among all nuclear-armed states to eliminate their nuclear arsenals under strict verification and timelines.
Are greenhouse gases harmful to human health?
Greenhouse gases have significant environmental and health impacts, including climate change, respiratory disease, extreme weather, food supply disruptions, and wildfires. They also cause species migration or growth. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, every sector of the global economy, from manufacturing to agriculture, transportation, and power production, must evolve away from fossil fuels. The Paris Climate Agreement of 2015 acknowledged this reality, with 20 countries responsible for at least three-quarters of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, with China, the United States, and India leading the way.
Technologies for ramping down greenhouse gas emissions include swapping fossil fuels for renewable sources, boosting energy efficiency, and discouraging carbon emissions by putting a price on them. These solutions aim to reduce the negative effects of climate change and ensure a sustainable future for all.
What are the health risks of greenhouse gasses?
The top 10 most common health issues include physical activity and nutrition, obesity, tobacco, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS, mental health, injury and violence, environmental quality, immunity, and access to healthcare. Physical activity can help prevent or delay certain diseases, relieve depression, and improve mood. Inactivity often accompanies aging, but it doesn’t have to. Check with local churches, synagogues, senior centers, and shopping malls for exercise and walking programs.
Eating habits should be rich in nutrients and avoid empty calories in candy and sweets. Overweight or obese individuals increase the chances of dying from hypertension, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, respiratory problems, dyslipidemia, and endometrial, breast, prostate, and colon cancers. In-depth guides and practical advice about obesity are available from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health.
What is the largest environmental health threat?
Air pollution is the largest environmental risk to public health, particularly for children, who are especially vulnerable. The author, who studied medicine at the University of Cape Town, emphasized the importance of understanding the social determinants of health from an early age. They noted that ethnicity had a direct impact on disease patterns and patient outcomes, but were not taught about the social determinants of health. Don Berwick, Emeritus President of the Institute of Healthcare Improvement, emphasized the need to move upstream to the real generators of illness, injury, injustice, and disability.
The author’s specialty of paediatrics and child health works largely upstream, working at the sharp edge of social determinants of health, such as poverty, inequality, and climate change. Air pollution is a critical issue for children worldwide, with certain parts of the world being disproportionately affected. Pollution from fine particulate matter, household burning of solid fuels, and ozone is responsible for millions of early deaths each year and an estimated 1 in 9 deaths worldwide, with the highest exposures occurring in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
What is the #1 environmental problem?
Air pollution, water pollution, and soil pollution are all significant contributors to global warming. Air pollution, a form of pollution, involves the contamination of natural air with pollutants like fumes and chemicals, leading to health issues and increased rain acidity. Water pollution, a form of pollution, involves the contamination of our water supply with chemicals, bacteria, or plastic waste, with oil leakage being a common example. Soil pollution, also known as land pollution, is caused by non-sustainable farming, hazardous wastage, and mining.
What is the current biggest environmental threat to health?
Air pollution is the leading cause of environmental health hazards affecting millions of Europeans, causing lung and heart diseases, premature deaths, and hearing loss. Noise pollution from highways, airports, and streets can lead to cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, with long-term exposure causing 12, 000 premature deaths and 48, 000 new cases of ischemic heart disease per year. Pollutants can enter rivers and lakes, accumulating in oceans, and chemicals used in industry and agriculture can enter the food chain and accumulate in our bodies.
Climate change affects all Europeans, causing heatwaves, UV radiation exposure, extreme weather events, pollen seasons, infectious diseases, and forest fires. Vulnerable groups like the elderly, children, low-income individuals, and those in poor health are most affected. Research is ongoing to explore the health impacts of specific environmental stressors like air pollution, noise, chemicals, and climate change.
What is the biggest health threat facing humanity?
Climate change is the largest health threat facing humanity, threatening clean air, safe drinking water, nutritious food, and safe shelter. It could undermine global health progress and lead to the death of 41 million people annually, equivalent to 74 of all deaths globally. Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) account for over 80 of all premature NCD deaths, with cardiovascular diseases accounting for 17. 9 million people annually. Cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes account for 9.
3 million, 4. 1 million, and 2. 0 million deaths, respectively. These diseases erode health and development gains, particularly for the poor and marginalized. To manage both crises, synergistic interventions should be implemented, addressing both the health and development of the poor and marginalized. Addressing climate change and NCDs requires a comprehensive approach that addresses both health and development issues.
What is the main threat to humans?
Climate change is a significant global issue affecting various aspects of our planet, including global warming, precipitation, air quality, biodiversity, and habitats. Earth has been evolving climatically for 4. 5 billion years since its formation, with life first appearing over three billion years ago and humans appearing 200, 000 years ago. While human activity has affected global climate change in recent history, its impact is less significant than the global scale of climate change.
📹 Why Climate Change Is a Threat to Human Rights | Mary Robinson | TED Talks
Climate change is unfair. While rich countries can fight against rising oceans and dying farm fields, poor people around the world …
This took place 8 years ago. I have seen and heard Mary Robinson in the 90’s in Utrecht, The Netherlands. I love to hear this women speak as she manages to touch my emotions every time. She simply brings Human Rights to another level, that is to ‘when people are in need’. Many people are not aware of Human Rights until they are not applied.
Seriously, we will need a substantially new way of thinking if humanity is to survive on this earth for years to come. If we deny climate change and don’t care about environmental degradation; we are no more than those people who are willing to be stupid because someone else was stupid in the past. All i’m saying is Actions speaks louder than words, countries must do something before it’s too late.
Responsibility, accountability, and altruism for others beyond self interests …mostly people don’t like being told what to do especially if feeling prejudice or bigotry over something. Doesn’t surprise me that so many would dislike a article they would never watch. Also it doesn’t surprise me feelings of human rights, poverty, science, climate change, conspiracy opinions, and of a majority. Will humans adapt as a whole? We shall see.
You might think that a lot of ppl are downvoting this because it’s about climate change, or because she’s a woman and she’s talking (as a white male this triggers me omg!). But people might actually be downvoting it because she’s a famous politician. She was president of Ireland. Seriously, look at all the other TED talks with politicians, they get voted down pretty hard. Politics always attracts a cloud of hate along for the ride. I think i much prefer this being the reason people are hating on her, rather than the alternatives mentioned above. edit: oh, it’s TEDwomen. Yeah ok that’s probably the reason it’s being downvoted, i’m convinced that people have votebots triggered by any mentioned on TEDwomen.
I subscribed to this website to see some new ideas and broaden my horizons. 90% of what i see on here now is just a big circle jerk where “Oh we all think the same!” I think its clear to see that anyone who disagrees with the main point are resisting these opinions wholeheartedly. Bring something fresh, teach me something new.
I am fortunate enough to live in a big city in India. I would prefer to go through public transport any for my job. However I don’t. Cuz the public transport is pathetic, there’s barely a place to keep my foot. The frequency of vehicles is quite less and they are never punctual. I blame my government for this. Even if people want to use public transport, so that they can save some money. They can’t because of the pathetic services provided by government.
“For the last hundred years, the ocean has risen 20 cm — but for the previous hundred years the ocean also has risen 20 cm and for the last 300 years, the ocean has also risen 20 cm per 100 years. So there is no unusual rise in sea level. And to be sure you understand that I will repeat it. There is no unusual rise in sea level,” Giaever said. – Nobel prize winner
When did TED talks stop being about science and more about backing social issues with science; That isn’t to say I think global warming isn’t very real issue(it fugging is!) but rather in previous years TED was mostly about what was happening in science, how it was improving the lives of people, helping the planet; the concrete improvements that the sciences are bringing about. Now it seems 2/3 talks pertain to some person or another’s opinion on the abstract of social problems.
The biggest problem, to me at least, the seemingly hardest choice that seems to be: If we carry on growing econmically, we put out selves in ever more danger from climate change. However, in order to reduce climate change to under 2 degrees, we effectively have to plundge ourselves into poverty. And we are just so close to ending poverty. In the 15 years, there will be no poor countries. So we either get grower riches and the planet warms up, or, we reduce the change but we’re all poor. Either way, we’re fucked. Another thing: Why do we call it mother earth? Why are there people who asume that nature is a conscious, real thing?
although human CO2 emissions are a big problem, it is far from the biggest fish to fry on this. CO2 is useful for crops, it needs to be in the right places (such as not over the ocean), and we will need CO2 to provide food because of the changing weather cycles. many old farms will drought, many will flood, those that are left must be able to provide enough food for the populations. we will have to actively cool the world by blocking sunlight, this will require us to go to space and move celestial objects. a geosynchronous asteroid or 10,000 will be needed to help block out the growing sunlight. don’t think it has to do with the sun? go ahead and explain the changing weather on the other planets then. we aren’t polluting jupiter.
How riddled this is with Internal contradictions is kinda miraculous. Yet, the seals clap in unison and on command. Climate related deaths have shrunk by 92 percent over the last century lady, BECAUSE of fossil fuels. Once technology develops that can match the output potential of fossil fuels, I promise you we will transitions. Till then, the fossil fuel show goes on.
Mary Robinson, I had the privilege to drive you & husband from Limerick train station to Motel on Dublin rd I wanted to ask Mr. Robinson if we were related My family is Casey+ Robinson Relations in the north I have never met I am going back to Steve Coughlan period in Limerick if you or Mr. Robinson could reply please, My Gran always said MR Robinson was related Family in England I have never met Lady you are beautiful A Irish woman.
Human induce climate changed directly affected a bad crops event in a village in Uganda? You have any scientific backing on that extraordinary claim? Do you realize how many “bad crops” there where in human history long before CO2 emission machines where even a thing? I’m sorry, but this lady is just making assumptions without bases.
Climate change is a physical reality, that is and will continue to destroy vast numbers of species, and the way we are going, us as well. Human rights is a concept only, an assertion of our superior condition, and is a gross conceit. Not offered to the other species we destroy and enslave. Personally, I am unconcerned with human rights; my concern is the continuation of all life, and not the gross murder by our gross arrogance.
Aw.. I thought that climate alarmism has been burried for good after all the lies and the forgeries that have been exposed. But there seems to be a bunch of extremists that still hasn’t given up on the idea to tax (carbon based) life itself. My advice: First, get the science straight, stop lying, stop insulting sceptics. If there will be a case left for carbon reduction (what I doubt) – come up with proposals that don’t push millions of people into poverty.
How did this old woman get to this conference? Did she walk or cycle a bike? Doubt it. I’d say she was driven to the airport. I’d say she flew to California . I’d say she had a car waiting for her at the airport. I’d say she has a carbon footprint that is more than thousands of families combined. I’d say she is a multi millionaire. I’d say the burning of fossil fuels paid a huge part in her wealth creation. I’d say she got handsomely rewarded for this speech. She is a complete hypocrite. If she was genuinely worried about climate change and leaving the poor of the world behind couldn’t she have given her speech through Skype? A joke.
Such a boring speech because it lacks real concrete examples. This is the weakness of 9 out of 10 speeches on TED Talk. Without concrete, descriptive examples, not only would professors fail you on your report or speeches, but you just come out with a vague, time-waster, general, dehumanizing speech.