COP28 Inaugural Health Day Recap | 12/31
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Deep dive: COP28 Inaugural Health Day Recap
COP28 was a watershed moment for climate and health mobilizing more than 100 countries, finance institutions and high-level leaders for the first-time ever at COP to put human health at the center of climate action.
Our key takeaways include:
Global Endorsement of the Health-Climate Nexus: The COP28 Declaration, supported by 125 countries, highlights the significant health impacts of climate change and the benefits of climate action.
Historic Ministerial Participation: Over 100 countries demonstrated their commitment to the climate-health intersection through their high-level representation.
Financial Commitments for Climate and Health: Announcements exceeded $1 billion in new funding to support climate and health initiatives.
Industry Momentum in Race to Zero: More than half of the pharma and medtech sectors by revenue have joined the Race to Zero, committing to net zero emissions by 2050.
Reflections from COP28 Health Day with Dr. Aditi Joshi
We had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Aditi Joshi, who recently attended COP28 and hosted the Technology and Innovation Stage at Health Day. She is an emergency medicine physician, best-selling author, digital health consultant, and telehealth expert with over 10 years of experience improving healthcare and equity through technology. Below is our conversation where she shared her insights and perspectives from COP28.
Q: Can you please share about yourself, your journey into clinical digital health, and how you started working in climate change?
A: I should tell everybody, I don't work in climate change. I have worked in digital health for about 10 years. I’m an emergency medicine physician and from 2016 to 2021, I ran a telemedicine program at a large academic center. My work led me to the UAE, where I am currently working on a project.
Despite saying that I haven't worked in climate change, I will say that when I learned more about it, I realized how often climate change affects medicine and health care, especially in the emergency department. We have seen a lot of what comes in through the hospital, from climate disasters, resulting conflicts, or any of the social determinants of health, all made me realize how much the work that I do is related to climate change. I came in with a tech and innovation angle, but this changed the way I think about emergency medicine and healthcare. Part of the goal here is to increase awareness and help change perspective on how this impacts all specialties, and how we can use tech to respond to in various innovative ways.
Q: What are your key takeaways from COP28, especially regarding healthcare and climate health informatics? Could you highlight any significant advancements, declarations, or initiatives discussed there?
A: First, the biggest takeaway is the fact that they even talked about health. This is the first year they did this. We are going to get a lot more discussions, a lot more research, and a lot more targeted ideas of what it means for climate to affect health and healthcare.
Secondly, although I was part of the Tech and Innovation Stage, the topic didn’t seem comprehensible across all aspects of Health Day. Moving forward, there are going to be more discussions, more people are going to recognize this intersection, and it will be more ingrained within the topic of climate change itself.
Thirdly, I only met, maybe one or two doctors. There were a lot of PhDs, but not medical doctors - generally, not a lot of clinicians or a community in this space. Nor people from digital health. I think that will change because targeted people are now part of the conversation. It created the start of the conversation, but there's still a lot of room for more of that to come.
One thing I noticed about the tech and innovations was that they used an older definition of tech and innovation - instead of talking about apps and devices, they focused on innovative ways of using existing products, processes, and devices. For example, on the Tech and Innovation Stage, they talked about innovation in water desalination, innovating and decreasing carbon emissions, making islands more self-reliant, and improving the supply chain.
Another thing I found interesting was that there was a focus on investment at a very local level, and then from federal and government sources. Many people think of climate change regulation and policy at a very high level, guided by governments and large companies. But, there were a few presentations, namely from Sudan and New Zealand, that highlighted investments in local entrepreneurs and local companies that are innovating around climate change for their local communities.
To hear the rest of the conversation, please use the link below:
Please note: for the newsletter structure, the Q&A above was edited and slightly varied from the audio recording.
Other news
A CNN report discusses how doctors are increasingly recognizing the impact of climate change on healthcare and patient outcomes, emphasizing the need for the medical community to adapt and respond to these challenges (CNN).
Experts explore how artificial intelligence is being used to tackle climate change challenges, leaving us pondering about such uses in health care. (Think Google)
A recent study by Keith et al. evaluates urban heat mitigation across networks of plans, providing crucial insights into climate resilience strategies (ASCP)
The Rockefeller Foundation announced a donation of over USD 11 million as part of its 5-year climate strategy dedicated to advancing climate solutions in low- and middle-income countries, and the U.S. (Rockefeller)
A Commonwealth Fund blog post by Hardeep Singh explores how clinicians can lead the way in climate action to protect patients and the planet (Common Wealth)
An NPR article discusses the presence of young doctors at COP28 and their important message for world leaders about climate change and health. (NPR)
Events & opportunities
The Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health hosts their meeting in Arlington, Virginia, on February 11-12, 2024, with a visit to Congress on February 13. Register.
The 2024 Planetary Health Summit and 6th Annual Meeting will be on April 16-19th uniting scientists, educators, policymakers, and industry leaders to shape a sustainable and resilient future. Register.
Winter Heat Pump Reality Check: Is yours keeping up? Join this webinar to hear from Design and Construction Allies as they explore the latest heat pump design guidance, technologies, and best practices to save energy and decarbonize buildings throughout the winter season. Register.
Practice Greenhealth will host monthly workshops beginning in November that will walk you through how to perform a complete greenhouse gas inventory including purchased goods and services), capital goods, and 3 fuel- and energy-related activities. Register.