Bulao, Melissa C.

2005-52492
IH 222 Final Paper
Dissecting Climate Change as a Global Health Issue
Introduction
The world is experiencing unprecedented rise in greenhouse gas emissions over the
last century, leading to an increase in average global surface temperatures, and
ultimately climate change. Because so many global processes are related to
climate, climate changes cuts across various global issues including public health.
This paper will examine climate change as a global issue. Specifically, it will
examine how climate change can affect public health, and how health is factored in
the global governance and policy actions to address climate change.
Defining Climate Change
Climate change is a term used to refer to major changes in temperature, rainfall,
snow or wind patens lasting for decades or longer (US EPA, 2010). Two factors play
a major role in climate change:

Human causes such as burning of fossil fuel and land conversion to farms and
cities. These all contribute to release of greenhouses gases into the
atmosphere.
Natural causes which include the circulation of the ocean, volcanic activity,
and changes in the Earths orbit the suns intensity.

The Earth has witnessed a number of climate changes in its history. However, the
rapid warming experienced today is unprecedented and unfathomable if due to
natural causes alone. It can be more attributed to increasing amount of
greenhouses gases in the atmosphere brought about by human activities (US EPA,
2010).
Greenhouse gases such as water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide
play a role in keeping the Earths surface and lower atmosphere warm. Without
these gases, the Earth would be so much colder. This natural greenhouse effect,
however, has been strengthened due to human activities. Since the Industrial
Revolution, concentration of greenhouses gases in the atmosphere has increase
significantly. It has been estimated that the concentration of CO 2 has increased by
40%, methane by 150%, and nitrous oxide by 20% compared to pre-industrial times.
This is alarming considering that more than half of the increase in CO 2 occurred only
after 1970 (DELS, n.d.).
The increased greenhouse effect is causing a shift in the Earths equilibrium and
making the global temperature a lot warmer. Multiples studies have concluded that
the global average surface temperature has increased by about 1.4F (0.8C) since
1900. Each of the last three decades has also been warmer than any decade since
1850. The increase may not seem much but the rate of warming in the last 50 years
(0.24F per decade) has almost doubled compared to the rate of warming 100 years

ago (0.13F per decade). The effect of global warming is becoming evident recently.
Polar ice caps have shrunk significantly. Sea level has risen by an average of 20 cm
since 1901 primarily due to melting of ice and glaciers on land and expansion of
warm water. Changes in temperature and precipitation are affecting life cycles and
geographical ranges of plants and animals. Further, the excess carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere is being absorbed by the ocean leading to changes in its chemical
composition (DELS, n.d.).
Global Impacts of Climate Change
Effects of climate change go beyond the increase in temperature, sea level,
variation in precipitation patterns and intensification of weather events. Because
many global issues are related to climate, climate change is expected to have
profound effect on a wide variety of global concerns especially on basic needs such
as food, water, national security, shelter and health (US EPA, 2015).
Impact on agriculture and food. Climate change can affect crop yield and livestock
productivity through heat stress, drought, and flooding events. There are already
areas such as Australia and Africa that are experiencing droughts and these places
are expected to encounter difficulties in the availability of water for irrigation.
Greatest decreases in crop yield will be experienced in dry and tropical areas. In
Africa, for instance, crop yield can decrease by as much as 50% by 202 due to
absence of rain. In addition to decreasing crop yields, food supply derived from the
ocean will also be affected due to increasing ocean temperatures. Marine species
are now migrating to cooler waters which may be outside of their usual range (US
EPA, 2015).
Impact on water supply and quality. Semi-arid and arid areas such as Southern
Africa, Brazil and the Mediterranean are very vulnerable to the potential effects of
climate change on water supply. As the century progress, these areas are expected
to face problems in declining water resources coupled with population pressures.
Water quality is also at risk. In particular, water quality in coastal areas are
treatened by rising level of saltwater, storm surges and algal blooms due to
increased water temperature (IPCC, 2007).
Impact on shelter. Climate change can affect the migration of people across the
globe. Extreme weather evens such as flood, hurricanes and drought may force
people to move into other areas. Coastal settlements are very vulnerable to flooding
and sea level rise. Megacities also face great risk. Aside from having populations of
over 10 million, most of the worlds megacities are also situated in areas that at risk
for sea level rise and storm surges. Megacities are also often the economy hubs.
Hence, damage to these places resulting to flooding and other extreme weather
events can also be detrimental to national development (ADB et al., 2010).
Impact on national security. Climate change can worsen national security issues and
create new international conflicts. In places where water issues cross national
borders, changes in timing of rainfall can threaten already limited water and cause
future conflicts. Food shortages due to decreasing crop yield can increase chances
of humanitarian crises and trigger movement of people across borders, ultimately
leading to political instability (US EPA, 2015).

Impact on health. Last but not the least, all issues above relate directly and
indirectly to human health. Examples of health impacts related to climate change
include (US EPA, 2015):
Frequent and severe stress due to increases in temperature
Breathing problems and worse respiratory diseases brought about by reduced
air quality that often accompany heat wave
Increased rate of malnutrition due to effects of climate on agricultural and
food systems
Changing pattern (emergence/re-emergence) of infectious diseases
Potential increase of vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue in
areas projected to have more rainfall and flooding.
Poor countries are especially more at risk of the health impacts mentioned above
due to their limited capacity to prevent and treat illness. Certain groups are also
more vulnerable. For instance, childrens immune and respiratory system are still
developing, hence, make them sensitive to extreme heat changes and diseases. On
the other hand, elderly population are at risk due to frail conditions and limited
mobility. Extreme heat and storm-related events also put older people at a large
disadvantage (US EPA, 2015).
Framing Climate Change as a Public Health Issue
There are several frames through which climate change is established as a global
issue. The most common frame is the environment frame which focuses on the
potential effects of climate change on the Earths landscape (Myers et al., 2012). In
this frame, climate change is often depicted clearly as en environmental issue which
resulted as lack for regard for the environment. A frame that is usually associated
with this is the blame/responsibility frame which often discusses who is
responsible for climate change, why and how it happened and who should take the
blame (Agwu and Amy, 2013).
Another frame is the political frame which implies that even through individuals
has the capacity to address environmental issue, the problem will be best
addressed through governments. The political frame is often tied up to the
economic frame which emphasizes the effect of climate change on various
industries if left unaddressed. Climate change can be treated as major development
opportunity but at the same poses an amplified economic risk is left unaddressed
(Agwu and Amy, 2013).
Surprisingly, the least common frame used for climate change is the health risk
frame where climate change is discussed in terms of health threats it brings to the
public (Agwu and Amy, 2013). This is despite the findings of Myers et al. (2012) that
the public health frame can be more effective at engaging audiences compared to
environmental or political frames as it can validly and accurately emphasize
relevant dimensions of climate change. Researches on the public heath frame also
showed that tacking climate change as a human health issue taps a broader cross
section of audiences, even those who have reservations on climate science. While
messages that emphasizes dire environmental consequences can result in less

concern, information related to human health may be found more compelling and
useful (Myers et al., 2012).
Nisbet (2009) presents similar arguments to Myers et al. (2012) highlighting that
while the public health frame is not among those initially predicted frames that will
make climate change more relevant, it is able to make the issue more personally
relevant particularly to new audiences. By defining climate change in terms of its
potential effects to diseases, heat stroke, asthma, and other health conditions, it
becomes a personal issue that can be perceived as familiar and important. Further
the public health frame shifts the visual of climate change effects from irrelevant or
unfamiliar regions such as the Artic regions with more socially proximate
situations across local communities.
Health in the Global Policy Responses to Climate Change
Greenhouse gasses, unlike other forms of pollutions, respect no boundaries and
have a global impact. Hence, efforts to address climate change are international in
nature, executed through collaborations and agreements. The primary international
body responsible for climate change actions has been the United Nations, which led
the institution to the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the
Kyoto Protocol (WNA, 2015).
UNFCCC came intro fruition in response to the concerns raised during the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)s First Assessment Report at the
UN General Assembly. IPCC is an expert body created by the World Metrological
Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) in
1998 tasked to assess scientific information on climate change. UNFCCC was
adopted in May 1992 and entered into force in 1994 with a main commitment to
stabilize greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels by 2000 (WNA, 2015).
The first step of UNFCCC towards achieving more substantial reductions in
greenhouse emissions is through the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol in 1997.
The protocol established binding targets for developed counties that adapted it, and
limits emission of remaining countries during first commitment period of 2008 to
2012. One flaw, however, in the Kyoto Protocol, is at the time of its forging in 1997,
China and India, despite being among the top emitters of greenhouse gases are still
developing countries. Hence, they were exempted from the mandatory cuts in
emissions imposed by the protocol. Because of this, the Unites States, the second
largest emitter of greenhouse gas after China, never ratified the protocol. Three of
the largest emitters of greenhouse gases are then not bound to reduce their
emissions, defeating the purpose of the Kyoto Protocol in the first place to deal with
climate change and despite significant reductions in the emissions of other
developed countries (Pinkerton and Rom, 2013).
To date, there now 194 of 204 sovereign states that have endorsed the UNFCCC. But
while it can be considered technically as a treaty, Pinkerton and Rom (2013)
commented that UNFCCC can more accurately described as an agreement to
agree to take actions that will mitigate the worst effects of climate change. There
is nothing in the agreement that specifically requires its party members to take such
action steps. Further, while the objectives of the UNFCCC are long term in nature,

there is current bias on short term targets which does not provide significant
incentives towards making investment in long term infrastructure changes required
to make sustainable reductions in greenhouse gas emissions (WNA, 2015). Hence,
despite having 17 UNFCCC conferences since 1995, there still a lot to be done in
coming with an agreement that adequately deals with the threats of climate change
(Pinkerton and Rom, 2013).
Other international approaches that deal with climate change include Asia Pacific
Partnership and agreements under the G8. The Asia Pacific Partnership (APP) on
Clean Development and Climate was an initiative established in 2005 by Australia,
Canada, China, India, Japan, South Korea and the US. The main goal of the
partnership was to accelerate and promote use energy efficient and cleaner
technologies and mitigate climate change without disregarding economic
development (ARIC, 2015). On the other hand, in its 2005 meeting in Glenegales,
Scotland, G8 counties placed Climate Change as one of its priority agenda, the
other being Africa. Among the goals identified were protection of local and
environment globally, including addressing greenhouse gas emissions (WNA,
2015).
In all of these international instruments and initiatives, where does health come into
picture? Dr. Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum of the World Health Organization
commented that while health was a central principle of the original 1992 Rio
Declaration on Environment and Development, and the UNFCCC, health has been
significantly overlooked in most important discussions on climate change. For
instance in the UNFCCC, while health is a sector acknowledged to be affected by
climate change, its vulnerability to climate changes is understated. Specially, 95%
of National Adaption Programmes of Actions identified by least developed countries
(LDC) include health as an affected sector and 73% of these listed health
interventions in the adaptation needs. However, only 23% has comprehensive
vulnerability assessment and only 27% of the interventions were found adequate
(The Graduate Institute of Geneva, 2014).
Further, while climate change feature significantly on the health agenda, there is a
need to establish stronger connections between health and international climate
change policies in order to come up with sustainable development objectives.
Health is also still underrepresented in most climate change mitigation and
adaptation plans. Lendrum emphasized that greater focus should be on co-benefits
of action, on coming up and carrying out cost-effective and efficient policies, and in
putting more weight on health in climate discussions (The Graduate Institute of
Geneva, 2014).
Opportunities and Challenges in Governance of Health and Climate Change
The WHO is increasingly taking responsibility for protecting and promoting health in
response to the challenges of climate change. In 2008, the World Health Assembly
passed a resolution on climate change and health, with particular emphasis on how
climate changes can hinder achievements of MDGs. Under this new action plan,
WHO has increased responsibility to (WHO, 2014):
Advocate climate change as a fundamental threat to human health;

Coordinate with other UN agencies to ensure health is properly represented in

the global climate change agenda;
Coordinate reviews of scientific evidences linking climate change and health
and come up a global research agenda, and;
To assist countries in assessing their health vulnerabilities and build their
capacity to address impact of climate change.

Of course, these can be easier said than done. At the local level particularly in
developing countries, much of the efforts done to mitigate the effects of climate
change occur outside the domain of the health sector, thus undermining the health
sector response in adaptation initiatives (Lovell, 2011). The Graduate Institute of
Geneva (2014), however, pointed out that the health sector has very important role
to play to shaping up carbon reduction policies with ancillary co-benefits like
improvement of air quality and fitness-promoting urban design. Such approach
reduces the social, economic and political barriers towards reducing greenhouse gas
emission as it adds a near-term element which is politically more attractive that
instituting climate mitigation measures alone.
Climate change does not also introduce anything radical to what is already know
about health outcomes. Its worse effect is increasing the vulnerabilities of the
population and the health system. Hence, as mentioned earlier, it can actually be
treated as an opportunity for development. Specific needs and initiatives will vary
across countries, but the emphasis on applying health systems approach in
strengthening the health system is a universal strategy.
Conclusion
It has been established that climate change directly and indirectly affects public
health. Increased global temperatures and extreme weather events such as flooding
and drought can affect agricultural and food systems, natural security, people
migration, and water quality, all of which are connected to the health and well-being
of people. Several international instruments dealing with reducing greenhouse gas
emissions, the main driver of climate change, are in place but the role of health in
these are severely understated. Framing climate change as a public health issue
presents an opportunity for scaling up efforts for mitigation and adaptation to
climate change as health information may more useful and compelling in describing
its effect at a community level.
Word Count: 2,751
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