Abstract
Climate change and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are arguably the greatest global challenges of the 21st Century. However, the confluence between them remains under-examined and there is little evidence of a comprehensive, systematic approach to identifying research priorities to mitigate their joint impact. Consequently, we: (i) convened a workshop of academics (n = 25) from the Worldwide Universities Network to identify priority areas at the interface between NCDs and climate change; (ii) conducted a Delphi survey of international opinion leaders in public health and relevant other disciplines; and (iii) convened an expert panel to review and advise on final priorities. Three research areas (water security; transport; conceptualising NCD harms to support policy formation) were listed among the top 10 priorities by >90% of Delphi respondents, and ranked among the top 12 priorities by >60% of respondents who ranked the order of priority. A fourth area (reducing the carbon footprint of cities) was ranked highest by the same >60% of respondents. Our results are consistent with existing frameworks on health and climate change, and extends them by focusing specifically on NCDs. Researching these priorities could progress understanding of climate change and NCDs, and inform global and national policy decisions for mitigating associated harms.
Highlights
The world is experiencing a triple crisis of chronic, non-communicable diseases (NCDs), economic and geopolitical instability and climatic volatility
Suffice to say that the strength of the evidence is such that the UN; governments; corporate, church, academic and global health leaders accept the reality of climate change, and are increasingly aware of its potentially dire consequences for human health and development
The workshop was attended by 25 Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) academics from Australia, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the West Indies, and three NCD non-government organisations
Summary
The world is experiencing a triple crisis of chronic, non-communicable diseases (NCDs), economic and geopolitical instability and climatic volatility. The magnitude of these crises is unprecedented with both climate change [1] and NCDs [2] described as among the 21st Century’s most daunting challenges. The threat of NCDs was not well-perceived until the major NCDs—cardiovascular disease; diabetes; cancer; and chronic respiratory diseases—already accounted for >60% of the world’s annual deaths [4] and by 2030 the toll will rise to 75% of global deaths [5]. The morbidity, mortality, health system and societal implications of this are well documented elsewhere, for example there have been four
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