Listen to "Vanessa Kerry on prioritizing health at COP27" on Spreaker.
During the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP 27, Sharm-el- Sheikh, Egypt, the impact of the climate crisis on health is a conversation happening on the periphery. But these conversations should be more central, health experts say, because of the devastating impact the changing climate is having on the burden of disease. Cholera cases are on the rise and billions of people could be at risk for malaria and dengue, among other escalating impacts.
Planet Health: Climate crisis and the future of health care
It’s clear the climate crisis is having increasingly serious and wide-ranging impacts on human health. In our content series Planet Health, we’re exploring how extreme weather, biodiversity loss, and displacement are leading to rising rates of disease and malnourishment and more. Find out more here.
Devex sat down with Vanessa Kerry, the CEO of Seed Global Health, an American nonprofit working to train health workforce in resource-limited settings, to discuss efforts to get health officially on the agenda at next year’s U.N. conference. She’s also advocating for a stronger health workforce equipped with managing the myriad health challenges the world will face as the climate changes.
“Our health and well being, our climate, and the resources we have to sustain ourselves are deeply interlinked. So I'm here to help draw attention to that,” she said.
About the authors
Sara Jervingsarajerving
Sara Jerving is a Senior Reporter at Devex, where she covers global health. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, VICE News, and Bloomberg News among others. Sara holds a master's degree from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism where she was a Lorana Sullivan fellow. She was a finalist for One World Media's Digital Media Award in 2021; a finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists in 2018; and she was part of a VICE News Tonight on HBO team that received an Emmy nomination in 2018. She received the Philip Greer Memorial Award from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 2014.
Naomi Mihara
Naomi Mihara is an Associate Editor for Devex, working on creative and audiovisual projects. She has a background in journalism and international development, having previously served as an assistant correspondent for Japanese newspaper The Yomiuri Shimbun and as a communications officer for the International Organization for Migration in Southeast Asia. She holds a master’s degree in Multimedia Journalism from Bournemouth University.