European Institute for Human Rights

Tag: Public Health

  • Climate Change and the Public Health Imperative for Supporting Migration as Adaptation

    Climate Change and the Public Health Imperative for Supporting Migration as Adaptation

    As human mobility has reached unprecedented levels in an era of accelerating global climate change, it is acknowledged that many cases of human migration in the context of climate change are forced or involuntary, particularly where adaptation measures have failed to achieve sufficient resiliency of communities against disasters.

    There are also many cases where migration is, itself, a voluntary adaptive measure to secure otherwise unattainable physical safety and life-sustaining resources.

    But, although climate migration is often approached as a human rights issue, it is noted that the public health community has been less unified and vocal on the topic.

    This paper, developed by the World Federation of Public Health Associations’ Environmental Health Working Group, seeks to address this gap by analyzing adaptive climate migration through a public health lens.

    The authors argue that creating an enabling environment for adaptive climate migration is not only a human rights imperative but also a public health necessity. They support this claim by showing how such environments can strengthen core public health services and functions, as outlined in the Global Charter for the Public’s Health.

    Learn more about this study here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmh.2023.100174

    Reference

    Marcus, H., Hanna, L., Tait, P., Stone, S., Wannous, C., & A product of the World Federation of Public Health Associations Environmental Health Working Group (2023). Climate change and the public health imperative for supporting migration as adaptation. Journal of migration and health, 7, 100174

  • Climate Change, Human Rights, and Social Justice

    Climate Change, Human Rights, and Social Justice

    The environmental and health consequences of climate change are explored in this paper, reiterating how they profoundly affect human rights and social justice, with disproportionate impacts on low-income countries and vulnerable populations within high-income countries.

    It is noticed how environmental changes such as rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, extreme weather events, and sea-level rise threaten agricultural production, access to safe water, and worker productivity, and are forcing many people to leave uninhabitable or uncultivatable land.

    Climate change also generates serious health impacts, including heat-related illness, vector-borne and waterborne diseases, respiratory disorders, malnutrition, mental health problems, and increased violence. Together, these environmental and health effects threaten civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights, including the rights to life, health, food, water, shelter, security, and culture.

    The most vulnerable groups include poor and marginalized populations, women, children, older adults, people with disabilities, and those living in climate-affected regions. Globally, low-income countries—despite contributing least to greenhouse gas emissions—are disproportionately affected and have fewer resources to adapt.

    In conclusion, the authors hypothesize on how climate adaptation and mitigation strategies must be designed to protect human rights, promote social justice, and avoid deepening existing inequalities.

    Learn more about this article here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aogh.2015.08.008

    Reference

    Levy, B. S., & Patz, J. A. (2015). Climate Change, Human Rights, and Social Justice. Climate Change, Global Health and Human Rights, 81(3), 310–322