This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: The latest Healthy NDC Scorecard, published by the Global Climate and Health Alliance, finds that, Colombia integrates health most deeply into its national climate plan, closely followed by Nigeria and Cambodia. Conversely, the climate commitments of the governments of Japan, New Zealand and India fail to adequately consider health, while high-emitting economies, including EU members, China, Brazil and the U.K., refer to health in their national climate plans but do not match this with the ambitious emissions reduction targets required to protect health.
The research by the Global Climate and Health Alliance, a consortium of more than 300 health professional organizations and health civil society groups and networks from around the world addressing climate change, also finds that many countries are missing opportunities to simultaneously improve air quality, protect public health and address climate change, with only five countries (Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Paraguay) setting targets to reduce black carbon, a major driver of global heating and air pollution that contributes to severe health harms. "The Healthy NDC Scorecard enables us to evaluate how governments are considering health in their climate planning, whether this is matched by their emissions reduction ambition, and to compare intended health and climate action to actual national air pollution mortality," said Dr. Nova Tebbe, postdoctoral researcher at the Global Climate and Health Alliance and research lead of the study.
"The human face of climate change has never been more obvious—governments must act now to integrate health," added Tebbe. "Rapid action to address short-lived climate pollutants including black carbon, methane, HFCs and tropospheric ozone offers a triple win of slowing the pace of global heating and future health threats, additional near-immediate health gains, and significant cost savings even within a political term. At the same time, more ambitious action to dramatically reduce emissions of CO₂ is critical in order to limit warming to levels compatible with human health for decades to come." "Clearly, such action must be taken immediately and implemented rapidly—health impacts of climate change are intensifying, with even further escalation probable due to El Niño conditions," added Tebbe.
"In the past months, floods have killed hundreds of people in Nepal, millions of children are at risk of hunger in Eastern and Southern Africa, Europe and the United States have seen widespread heat-related mortality and hundreds of wildfires have raged in Canada." "Governments must grasp that air quality action is a vital part of effective climate action, and that people's health and lives are at stake with both," said Dr. Jeni Miller, executive director of the Global Climate and Health Alliance. "Ensuring the integration of health and air quality considerations into climate policy protects populations, maximizes economic benefits and builds public backing for ambitious climate policies which are so urgently needed.
Integrating health into climate policies across sectors is essential to reaping these benefits and to protecting people's health and well-being in the climate era. Omitting them represents a missed opportunity for climate change, air quality and protecting people's lives." The NDC Scorecard provides policymakers with the means to identify strengths, gaps and opportunities within climate plans by highlighting where health and clean air considerations are being addressed—and where more action is needed. The scorecard also showcases good practices from around the world to protect health and reduce air pollution, and enables countries to compare their progress with others.
The Global Climate and Health Alliance previously produced healthy NDC scorecards in 2021 and 2023, followed by a Clean Air Scorecard in 2023. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. d research that matter—daily or weekly. The scorecard demonstrates the extent to which governments' national climate commitments (nationally determined contributions, NDCs) recognize the links between climate change, air quality and the health of their populations, and whether they define plans for taking action.
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