Can you cut 1 Tonne of carbon pollution out of your life?
Take the challengeThe World Health Organisation (WHO) is now calling climate change the biggest global health threat this century.
Basic human health needs include food, water, shelter and fresh air - all of these are elements which will be affected by climate change.
Here are the key facts from the WHO website.
- Climate change affects the social and environmental determinants of health – clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food and secure shelter.
- Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause approximately 250 000 additional deaths per year, from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea and heat stress.
- The direct damage costs to health (i.e. excluding costs in health-determining sectors such as agriculture and water and sanitation), is estimated to be between US$ 2-4 billion/year by 2030.
- Areas with weak health infrastructure – mostly in developing countries – will be the least able to cope without assistance to prepare and respond.
- Reducing emissions of greenhouse gases through better transport, food and energy-use choices can result in improved health, particularly through reduced air pollution.
Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum, head of the climate change team at the World Health Organisation (WHO) told 3NEWS :
"Climate change is no longer only an environmental issue."
"If we don't act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions we'll be living on a planet which is basically in many important respects unsuitable, in many locations, for health."
THE TOP 5 BREAK DOWN
1. Malaria:
Malaria is a serious problem in many countries around the world and it's set to get worse. It currently kills 800,000 people a year. Climate change is altering the breeding season and geographical range of mosquitoes, meaning this number could rise by 60,000 a year. Also increasing is the geographical range of ticks and other insects which carry disease.
2. Air pollution and allergens:
WHO estimates air pollution is responsible for 1 in 8 deaths around the world. It killed 7 million people in 2012 and these numbers are predicted to rise due to dangerous climate change.
3. Extreem heat:
WHO explains that the extreme heat, a symptom of climate change, could kill 38,000 more people a year.
4. Depression and anxiety:
The stress of failing food systems, the increase of natural disasters and extreme weather conditions, plus the increased risk of disease are all set to have levels of depression and anxiety sky-rocketing around the globe.
5. Malnutrition:
With the failure of the global food system ( set to happen sooner than first thought, actually within the next 10 years ) malnutrition is a very real and serious threat. In some African countries, yields of staple food crops are expected to fall as much as 50% by 2020.
Health is said to be high on the agenda for discussion at this months Climate Summit in New York ( read more about that here ).
Reading these points can be very scary and confronting, but it's important we use this information to fuel our motivation to act on climate change and not let it overwhelm us.
Everyday, every positive choice you make towards living a more sustainable lifestyle if making a difference. If 1 million women all make one better choice, however small, it leads to real change - plus you never know who you may be influencing with your actions.