The Intersection of Health, Equity, and Climate Change
Human health and the health of our planet, including the stability of our climate, are intertwined. Climate change is a major threat to any vision of a healthy future.
As our environments change, it harms our health. Health harms from climate change are occurring with increasing frequency and magnitude—from wildfires in the West to stronger, bigger hurricanes and worsening air pollution.
While climate change harms everyone, some people experience greater burden and feel it sooner. Where you live or work, your race, your age, if you have pre-existing health conditions or chronic illness, and your income all influence how deeply environmental changes are felt.
Through the Health and Climate Solutions program, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is working with leaders in communities across the United States to identify, highlight, and learn from smart, effective approaches and solutions that improve health, advance health equity and work to address climate change. These grantees, along with grantees across the Foundation, are contributing critical insights into how we can address these three intertwined issues.
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Research
Climate Change Threatens our Health and Deepens Health Inequities
A series of briefs shows how climate change is harming the health while also demonstrating how the health inequities we see today, which too often are the result of structural and systemic racism, are made even worse by a changing climate.
Barriers and Opportunities in Communicating about the Intersection of Health, Climate Change and Equity
The evidence is clear that while many are at greater risk (e.g., due to age, health status, the types of jobs they work, etc.), people of color, those with low incomes, and those living in rural areas—or some combination of these three factors—are often at the most risk of climate change's harms.
Featured Initiatives
Conservation Law Foundation (CLF)
CLF Ventures invests in creating more walkable, affordable, vibrant neighborhoods to mitigate the impacts of climate change and improve people’s health.
Strong, Prosperous, And Resilient Communities Challenge (SPARCC)
SPARCC is investing in and amplifying local efforts to ensure that new investments in community and economic development reduce racial disparities, build a Culture of Health, and prepare for a changing climate.
Biophilic Design Initiative
This initiative, led by the International Living Future Institute, uses measures of climate change mitigation to shape building design practices, connecting people and nature within our built environment and communities.
From the Blog
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How Unjust Policies Influence Who Experiences the Harms of Climate Change First08/03/2023
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Lessons from a Malawian Farmer on Climate Change, Food Justice, and Gender Equity02/03/2022
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Climate Change, Environmental Justice, and the Rise of Local Solutions04/15/2021
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Global Approaches to Curb the Health Impact of Climate Change03/23/2020
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How Communities are Promoting Health and Responding to Climate Change09/30/2019
Health and Climate Change
1-min read