Call for ‘ecohealth’ approach to tackling climate change

Marco Boscolo in SciDev.net: If researchers are to effectively address the profound challenges that climate change will have on human health, they will have to work across disciplines and with local communities, says a declaration from the 5th Biennial Conference of the International Association For Ecology & Health held last week (11-15 August).

The declaration “is an endorsement and a call to action on climate change”, said Maya Gislason, a member of the conference’s international advisory committee from the University of Northern British Columbia, Canada.

“Ecohealth is a field of research, education and practice that integrates scientific evidence, professional expertise and community experience with a view to improving the health of humans, animals and ecosystems,” the declaration says. “A focus on health — across humans, animals and other species — offers new opportunities to harness synergies across disparate efforts to address climate change.”

It is not the first time a call has been made to break boundaries between disciplines but previously there has been little follow-up action, Jean Lebel, the president of the International Development Research Centre, a Canadian public corporation that supports research in developing nations and which co-organised the conference, told SciDev.Net.

...The declaration says it is intended to push more researchers to address climate change issues through concrete actions such as working directly with communities most affected by climate change, for example, those on small island states....

The alleged location of the Garden of Eden, at the mouth of the Tigris River, from Underwood's "Sacred Books and Literature of the East"

European Environment Agency urges for ‘systemic’ approach to environment, health concerns

EurActiv: Governments need to study the connections between health and environmental concerns, which could save them money and improve societal well-being over the longer term, according to the European Environment Agency.

...The EEA is also seeking to promote this kind of thinking in relation to climate change and other complex problems.

Noxious emissions can damage the environment, as seen in acid rain or reduced crop yields, or human health, with higher incidences of respiratory diseases, with the costs falling on governments and taxpayers.

"It may seem there is nothing new about considering different policy areas together – air pollution, for instance, has often been considered in terms of its health implications. But the report argues that research should further incorporate these areas, allowing us to gain a system-wide understanding of multiple causes and effects," the EEA says, referring to a report it released in February on the environment, health and well-being.

By failing to address the source of the problem, government costs can mount up, particularly in healthcare. Many European countries had to cut their healthcare budgets during the economic crisis, leaving citizens unable to receive treatment, such as medicines.

However, with many problems being inter-linked, the potential for governments to reduce their costs is great. “It is difficult to measure the effects of our environment on our health,” said Lode Godderis, a researcher on health and the environment with KU Leuven, in Belgium. However, sometimes the scientific evidence does reveal connections, he said....

Paris at night, shot by Benh LIEU SONG, Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license