Climate change profoundly impacts human livelihoods, posing a preeminent threat to global health and sustainability, exacerbating existing inequities, and harming the well-being of future generations. The Duke Global Health Institute’s (DGHI) new Climate Change and Global Health Initiative will serve as a hub for interdisciplinary and global collaborative partnerships that connects health, life, social, physical, and human scholars to: advance discovery at the interface of climate change and health; test and implement adaptation and mitigation strategies to help address adverse impacts; apply scientific evidence to promote policy change; and develop the next generation of leaders in the global health and climate field.

This launch event aims to generate momentum around the DGHI Climate Change and Global Health Initiative, and to consider how to best support the research goals of the Climate and Health Observatories – in the Southeast US, Amazon Region, Eastern and Southern Africa, and Southeast Asia – that are at the core of the initiative’s vision for impact. We aim to engage with those already working on related topics and with others who are interested in working on climate and health topics in the future.

PRESENTERS

• Chris Beyrer
• Mercedes Bravo
• Marc Jeuland
• Bill Pan
• Nishad Jayasundara
• Joao Vissoci

AGENDA

• Opening comments
• Overarching vision of the DGHI Climate and Health Initiative
• Overview of climate change trends and major health threats in the observatory locations
• What is a climate change and health observatory?
• How can we think about opportunities/extensions of this model to help answer questions and regions?
• Q&A
• Group work: Divide into tables by observatory location, with one moderator per table
• Report back in plenary and discussion
• Informal post-event mingling with light snacks and beverages