Geneva [Switzerland], October 29 (ANI): The World Health Organization (WHO) and The Lancet have issued a stark warning that ongoing inaction on climate change is claiming millions of lives each year while threatening global health, economies, and livelihoods.
In a joint statement released on Wednesday, the organizations called for urgent recognition of health as the most powerful driver of climate action. The warning accompanies the release of the 2025 Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change, produced in collaboration with WHO.
The report found that 12 of 20 key indicators tracking health threats have reached record levels, showing how dependence on fossil fuels and inadequate adaptation to a warming planet are taking a devastating toll on human well-being.
“The climate crisis is a health crisis. Every fraction of a degree of warming costs lives and livelihoods,” said Dr. Jeremy Farrar, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Health Promotion, Disease Prevention, and Care. “Climate inaction is killing people now in all countries. However, climate action is also the greatest health opportunity of our time. Cleaner air, healthier diets, and resilient health systems can save millions of lives now and protect current and future generations.”
According to the report, heat-related mortality has increased by 23 percent since the 1990s, with an estimated 546,000 deaths annually. In 2024 alone, the average person experienced 16 days of dangerous heat that would not have occurred without climate change. Extreme weather events like droughts and heatwaves also contributed to food insecurity for an additional 124 million people in 2023.
The economic toll has been severe. Heat exposure caused the loss of 640 billion potential labor hours in 2024, equivalent to USD 1.09 trillion in productivity losses, while the financial cost of heat-related deaths among older adults reached USD 261 billion.
The report criticized governments for continuing to provide massive fossil fuel subsidies—totaling USD 956 billion in 2023, over three times the amount pledged to support climate-vulnerable nations. Fifteen countries reportedly spent more on fossil fuel subsidies than on their national health budgets.
Despite these alarming findings, the report pointed to evidence of hope. Between 2010 and 2022, reductions in coal-based air pollution prevented an estimated 160,000 premature deaths annually. Renewable energy generation accounted for 12 percent of global electricity in 2024, creating around 16 million jobs worldwide.
Dr. Marina Romanello, Executive Director of the Lancet Countdown at University College London, stressed that solutions are already within reach. “We already have the solutions at hand to avoid a climate catastrophe—and communities and local governments around the world are proving that progress is possible. Rapidly phasing out fossil fuels in favor of clean renewable energy and efficient energy use remains the most powerful lever to slow climate change and protect lives,” she said.
The report praised cities, communities, and the health sector for leading the way despite slow national progress. Nearly all reporting cities—834 out of 858—have completed or plan to complete climate risk assessments. The global health sector reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 16 percent between 2021 and 2022, while maintaining care quality.
According to WHO, 58 percent of Member States have completed health vulnerability and adaptation assessments, and 60 percent have finalized national health adaptation plans.
As the world prepares for COP30 in Belem, Brazil, the report calls for placing health at the center of climate policy. WHO announced it will release a COP30 Special Report on Climate Change and Health, outlining the policies and investments needed to safeguard health and equity as part of the upcoming Belem Action Plan.
Now in its ninth year, the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change is a collaboration between WHO, University College London, and 71 academic and UN institutions, supported by Wellcome. It remains the most comprehensive annual assessment of how climate change affects human health and how swift, coordinated action can save lives. (ANI)
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