Sattva’s report on Climate Change and Public Health underscores the scale of the climate crisis: 40% of stroke and heart disease deaths are linked to air pollution exposure. Other estimates suggest food production could decline by 16% by 2030 (International Food Policy Research Institute), while 380 million workers in India are already exposed to dangerous heat conditions.
Climate change is rapidly reshaping our health, working conditions, food systems, and healthcare. In this episode of Decoding Impact, Rathish Balakrishnan is joined by Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Former Chief Scientist at the World Health Organisation, to unpack these critical intersections.
Together, they explore
- How climate change impacts health in multiple ways
- What it takes to build climate-resilient health systems
- The role of governments in shaping policy, advancing research, and prioritising climate-informed healthcare.
- What solutions could look like, from the community level to the national level
Tune in for a compelling conversation with one of the most accomplished voices in global health.
Key topics covered
- The impacts of air pollution & heat on our health
- Human & wildlife conflict, heat stress on workers, and spreading vector-borne diseases
- Building a climate-resilient health system
- Assessing our readiness to tackle climate change
- What would a climate-ready health system look like?
- Centre vs State role
- Designing solutions, examples of the Pannai app & INCOIS’ app
- The role of citizen action
- Solutions we can replicate: Heat Action Plans, Heat Officers, parametric insurance etc.
- The impact of climate change on mental health
- The role of industry & philanthropy
- What about the talent to make this happen?
