Health and climate issues closely relate as environmental hazards have the ever-increasing potential to inflict damage on human populations. Climate conditions are able to worsen human health in the form of physiological deterioration, such as heart and lung diseases, asthma, mental health illnesses and many more ailments.
Extreme natural disasters such as floods, droughts, hurricanes and wildfires are examples of environmental factors that hurt human health. While these elements can cause health issues like the ones above, indirectly, the correlation between health and climate issues appears in the form of ecological changes and other biological forms. Examples include food security, mental illness, malnutrition, water-borne diseases and/or other infectious diseases. Reducing environmental risks can ultimately reduce these health risks.
Food Insecurity
In 2017, there were 157 million more “heat wave exposure events” than in 2000, which are extreme weather conditions that drastically increase individuals’ chance of mortal health risks. Extreme heat leads to an increase in hospital admissions and deaths credited to cardiovascular diseases, respiratory disorders, heat stroke and more. Heatwaves also decrease productivity—people lost 153 billion hours of labor from “excessive heat,” primarily in the agricultural industry, in 2017. Productivity loss leads to food insecurity, disruption of livelihoods and poor income distribution for those depending on agriculture for jobs.
As well as productivity decline, extreme weather events can diminish biodiversity and change rainfall trends, which causes crop yields to decline around the world. Insufficient crop yields reduce the amount of “consumable food calories” or the amount of food produced from crop yields for people to eat. This process results in global food insecurity, malnutrition, stunted growth, diseases and death, and while most wealthy countries are able to import food or find other viable crop options, rural areas in poorer countries, where 70% of the world’s most food-insecure live, suffer. Globally, food production lost approximately 35 trillion calories, which could have fed undernourished populations, as a result of fluctuating and unfavorable environmental conditions. Meanwhile, about 70% of weather disasters (droughts, floods, storms and more) are climate-related and FAO specifies that agriculture endures more than 20% of the damages. Of the damages to all industries from droughts in Latin America and the Caribbean between 2006 and 2016, agriculture bore 80% of the damages.
Food insecurity from insufficient crop yields increases the demand for food without a supply, therefore prices rise, which generates a new level of vulnerability for poor populations and forces them to turn to less nutritional food and threatens mass malnutrition. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) possesses a small agricultural industry and imports approximately 86% of its food. Food insecurities from their produce suppliers will “constrain trade flows” to the UAE and pressure individual people and households to spend a greater proportion of their income on food.
Increase in Diseases
Infectious diseases, such as malaria and cholera, and waterborne diseases spread faster in warmer climates leading to illnesses becoming more prevalent in regions where they were previously not a threat. As the frequency of droughts increases, humans become dependent on contaminated water sources that are more likely to have waterborne viruses that infect populations.
Malaria is an example of a disease that can spread based on environmental factors. As the temperature of the earth rises, malaria becomes more prevalent and the death rate increases because warmer than usual conditions enable the disease to spread to new, previously immune regions, such as East Africa.
Because the threat level of food and waterborne diseases is dependent on climate conditions, governments must prepare surveillance and preventative measures within their health systems.
Air Quality
The increased frequency of wildfires that put human health at risk is another example of how health and climate intertwine. Wildfires produce smoke that leaves behind carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter in the air which dramatically reduces the air quality. The World Health Organization (WHO) and CDC credit smoke exposure and poor air quality as the causes of “hundreds of thousands of deaths annually” from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, lung cancer, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and strokes.
Additionally, poor air quality from unclean cooking, heating and lighting practices—using indoor stoves and burning kerosene, wood, animal dung or vegetables—kills 4 million annually and causes 93% of children around the world to suffer from respiratory infections, according to WHO. Air pollution impacts the population generationally, as those that suffer from exposure to polluted air are later more likely to give birth to premature children with increased susceptibility to diminished cognitive ability, asthma, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. In 2016, 1,432 individuals died as a result of air pollution in the United Arab Emirates.
Poverty undoubtedly plays a significant role in health. Factors such as geographic location, socioeconomic status, age, access to health care, the resiliency of health care infrastructure and type of ecological threat have the potential to drastically amplify the level of health risk to populations. A perfect example of the role of wealth regarding health is how 98% of “low- and middle income countries with more than 100,000 inhabitants” worldwide fail to reach air quality standards that WHO has presented. Comparatively, the number of high-income countries with inadequate air quality levels is 56%. The good news is that many of these environmental problems are reversible: just as environmental issues can cause health problems, solving environmental issues can improve global health.
Actions Taken
The East African Development Fund (EADB) is an example of an economic institution that recognizes the threat of environmental issues on socio-economic development and overall health. The EADB has identified the necessity of addressing health and climate threats through the process of development in developing countries and regions. By supporting various initiatives and technologies, the EADB helps those facing environmental obstacles such as droughts, changes in rainfall and diminished crop yields.
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is an organization that finances projects that address environmental issues. The GEF has provided $20.5 billion in grants and $112 billion to finance environmentally regenerative projects in 170 countries. GEF prioritizes a multifaceted approach and deliberate engagements with the “private sector, indigenous peoples, and civil society” to establish a variety of strategies and results.
Many more organizations like these exist, such as the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) and the Latin American Energy Organization (OLADE). These environmental organizations support national strategies to mitigate the economic and health repercussions of the environment and encourages each nation to do its part in addressing environmental challenges.
WHO Recommendations
Every four years, WHO curates profiles for countries to identify climate risks, correlating health impacts and national responses. In these profiles, WHO connects health and climate issues, as well as categorizes health impacts and solutions that differ between country and region. Across the board, one of the primary recommendations is the implementation of policy and a national strategy for health and climate issues. For example, one of the primary concerns in the United Arab Emirates is air pollution and the respiratory effects, whereas, in the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu in Polynesia, rising sea levels produce the most concern. WHO helps plan and implement “climate-resilient health systems” which improves the health workforce’s ability to better respond to health effects from environmental problems. In Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands, health officials receive training on health services for extreme weather events and “climate sensitive diseases.”
There are innumerable ways that public health and climate issues interconnect—tackling health problems and global environmental problems together is like killing two birds with one stone. As an international organization, WHO is responsible for producing thorough health guidelines and coordinating global health and climate responses. It falls upon each country to determine its role in protecting global health and solutions for environmental challenges they can implement to ensure the safest future.
– Nye Day
Photo: Flickr
Homelessness in Trinidad and Tobago
The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is the southernmost island in the Caribbean. The country has a population of approximately 1.39 million people, with 20% of those people living below the poverty line. As a result, homelessness in Trinidad and Tobago is a common reality for many citizens. Homelessness does not only impact those who experience it directly, but it also harms the surrounding community and the overall Trinidadian economy.
The Effects of Homelessness and Poverty
According to Newsday, there are approximately 414 homeless people living on the streets of Trinidad and Tobago. Behavioral health disorders, rising numbers of victims of assault and acute and chronic physical conditions are just some of the effects of homelessness in Trinidad and Tobago. Crimes against the homeless has risen drastically in the country. There has been a total of 1,437 assault cases against homeless individuals alone. With an unemployment rate of 4.9%, and rising drastically, conditions are made worse as more citizens fall below the poverty line and into homelessness.
The 2020 coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted economies worldwide, and Trinidad and Tobago is no exception. The pandemic has increased the number of vulnerable individuals and the percentage of people living in homelessness in the country. As a tourism-dependent country, the pandemic caused the closure of most touristic attractions, thus decreasing the amount of money going into Trinidad and Tobago. Therefore, many people were laid off and fell below the minimum wage line.
The Good News
Despite the increasing numbers of people on the streets, many organizations have come together to help the homeless in Trinidad and Tobago. With the help of The Social Development Ministry, the Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force has worked rigorously to build temporary housing for the homeless. The facility aforementioned began construction in April of 2020 and provides homeless individuals with roofs over their heads, cots to sleep on, clean bathrooms and meals three times a day. To ensure the safety and health of those staying there, social distancing has been enforced and The Public Health Department has conducted inspections.
By raising funds to provide housing for those less fortunate, Habitat for Humanity has also made a positive impact in the country. The organization builds safe and clean habitats for those in need in Trinidad and Tobago. The non-profit began building in 1997 and has served more than 700 people since.
Homelessness in Trinidad and Tobago affects many people, especially during a time when homeless rates are rising drastically as more people lose their jobs. Assistance provided by the Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force has helped decrease the number of people living on the street. As more shelters open, more homeless individuals begin receiving the help they need.
– Jacey Reece
Photo: Flickr
Artificial Intelligence Helps Impoverished Communities during COVID-19 Pandemic
What is Artificial Intelligence?
Artificial intelligence is a branch of computer science focused on intelligence displayed by machines. There are both pros and cons associated with the development of artificial intelligence. However, with the possibility of COVID-19 pushing 50 million more people into poor households in 2020, many countries are doing everything they can to harness this developing technology.
Artificial Intelligence, COVID-19 and Poverty
People in impoverished communities are facing a serious dilemma: should they continue to work and potentially catch COVID-19 or stay home and face hunger or malnutrition?
There is currently no vaccine for the virus, and lockdowns and social distancing measures are effective but economically harmful. Most people in poverty do not have the financial savings to support themselves. Similarly, restrictions have the potential to push already unstable economies in less developed countries into a recession. Fortunately, artificial intelligence is providing new ways to support people in such challenging times.
4 Ways Artificial Intelligence Can Help Impoverished Communities During COVID-19
The race to harness artificial intelligence is on around the globe. Artificial intelligence has the potential not only to alleviate the impacts of COVID-19 on developing countries but around the world. The public database Kaggle is sponsoring the COVID-19 Open Research Dataset Challenge. Its hope is that experts around the world will come together to find new ways to use artificial intelligence techniques. Ultimately, this will produce new insights to assist in the global fight against COVID-19.
– Araceli Mercer
Photo: Flickr
5 Important Facts About Healthcare in Tuvalu
5 Facts About Healthcare in Tuvalu
Solution
Tuvalu’s success in improving healthcare for its citizens should be celebrated. But there is still room for improvement. With the help of the WHO, Tuvalu’s Ministry of Health has developed a strategic plan to control the rise in NCDs and nutrition-related diseases among its citizens. The country is tackling these issues by educating Tuvaluans to make healthier choices, reducing inequality and poverty.
– Jasmine Daniel
Photo: Flickr
Health and Climate Correlations
Health and climate issues closely relate as environmental hazards have the ever-increasing potential to inflict damage on human populations. Climate conditions are able to worsen human health in the form of physiological deterioration, such as heart and lung diseases, asthma, mental health illnesses and many more ailments.
Extreme natural disasters such as floods, droughts, hurricanes and wildfires are examples of environmental factors that hurt human health. While these elements can cause health issues like the ones above, indirectly, the correlation between health and climate issues appears in the form of ecological changes and other biological forms. Examples include food security, mental illness, malnutrition, water-borne diseases and/or other infectious diseases. Reducing environmental risks can ultimately reduce these health risks.
Food Insecurity
In 2017, there were 157 million more “heat wave exposure events” than in 2000, which are extreme weather conditions that drastically increase individuals’ chance of mortal health risks. Extreme heat leads to an increase in hospital admissions and deaths credited to cardiovascular diseases, respiratory disorders, heat stroke and more. Heatwaves also decrease productivity—people lost 153 billion hours of labor from “excessive heat,” primarily in the agricultural industry, in 2017. Productivity loss leads to food insecurity, disruption of livelihoods and poor income distribution for those depending on agriculture for jobs.
As well as productivity decline, extreme weather events can diminish biodiversity and change rainfall trends, which causes crop yields to decline around the world. Insufficient crop yields reduce the amount of “consumable food calories” or the amount of food produced from crop yields for people to eat. This process results in global food insecurity, malnutrition, stunted growth, diseases and death, and while most wealthy countries are able to import food or find other viable crop options, rural areas in poorer countries, where 70% of the world’s most food-insecure live, suffer. Globally, food production lost approximately 35 trillion calories, which could have fed undernourished populations, as a result of fluctuating and unfavorable environmental conditions. Meanwhile, about 70% of weather disasters (droughts, floods, storms and more) are climate-related and FAO specifies that agriculture endures more than 20% of the damages. Of the damages to all industries from droughts in Latin America and the Caribbean between 2006 and 2016, agriculture bore 80% of the damages.
Food insecurity from insufficient crop yields increases the demand for food without a supply, therefore prices rise, which generates a new level of vulnerability for poor populations and forces them to turn to less nutritional food and threatens mass malnutrition. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) possesses a small agricultural industry and imports approximately 86% of its food. Food insecurities from their produce suppliers will “constrain trade flows” to the UAE and pressure individual people and households to spend a greater proportion of their income on food.
Increase in Diseases
Infectious diseases, such as malaria and cholera, and waterborne diseases spread faster in warmer climates leading to illnesses becoming more prevalent in regions where they were previously not a threat. As the frequency of droughts increases, humans become dependent on contaminated water sources that are more likely to have waterborne viruses that infect populations.
Malaria is an example of a disease that can spread based on environmental factors. As the temperature of the earth rises, malaria becomes more prevalent and the death rate increases because warmer than usual conditions enable the disease to spread to new, previously immune regions, such as East Africa.
Because the threat level of food and waterborne diseases is dependent on climate conditions, governments must prepare surveillance and preventative measures within their health systems.
Air Quality
The increased frequency of wildfires that put human health at risk is another example of how health and climate intertwine. Wildfires produce smoke that leaves behind carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter in the air which dramatically reduces the air quality. The World Health Organization (WHO) and CDC credit smoke exposure and poor air quality as the causes of “hundreds of thousands of deaths annually” from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, lung cancer, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and strokes.
Additionally, poor air quality from unclean cooking, heating and lighting practices—using indoor stoves and burning kerosene, wood, animal dung or vegetables—kills 4 million annually and causes 93% of children around the world to suffer from respiratory infections, according to WHO. Air pollution impacts the population generationally, as those that suffer from exposure to polluted air are later more likely to give birth to premature children with increased susceptibility to diminished cognitive ability, asthma, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. In 2016, 1,432 individuals died as a result of air pollution in the United Arab Emirates.
Poverty undoubtedly plays a significant role in health. Factors such as geographic location, socioeconomic status, age, access to health care, the resiliency of health care infrastructure and type of ecological threat have the potential to drastically amplify the level of health risk to populations. A perfect example of the role of wealth regarding health is how 98% of “low- and middle income countries with more than 100,000 inhabitants” worldwide fail to reach air quality standards that WHO has presented. Comparatively, the number of high-income countries with inadequate air quality levels is 56%. The good news is that many of these environmental problems are reversible: just as environmental issues can cause health problems, solving environmental issues can improve global health.
Actions Taken
The East African Development Fund (EADB) is an example of an economic institution that recognizes the threat of environmental issues on socio-economic development and overall health. The EADB has identified the necessity of addressing health and climate threats through the process of development in developing countries and regions. By supporting various initiatives and technologies, the EADB helps those facing environmental obstacles such as droughts, changes in rainfall and diminished crop yields.
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is an organization that finances projects that address environmental issues. The GEF has provided $20.5 billion in grants and $112 billion to finance environmentally regenerative projects in 170 countries. GEF prioritizes a multifaceted approach and deliberate engagements with the “private sector, indigenous peoples, and civil society” to establish a variety of strategies and results.
Many more organizations like these exist, such as the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) and the Latin American Energy Organization (OLADE). These environmental organizations support national strategies to mitigate the economic and health repercussions of the environment and encourages each nation to do its part in addressing environmental challenges.
WHO Recommendations
Every four years, WHO curates profiles for countries to identify climate risks, correlating health impacts and national responses. In these profiles, WHO connects health and climate issues, as well as categorizes health impacts and solutions that differ between country and region. Across the board, one of the primary recommendations is the implementation of policy and a national strategy for health and climate issues. For example, one of the primary concerns in the United Arab Emirates is air pollution and the respiratory effects, whereas, in the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu in Polynesia, rising sea levels produce the most concern. WHO helps plan and implement “climate-resilient health systems” which improves the health workforce’s ability to better respond to health effects from environmental problems. In Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands, health officials receive training on health services for extreme weather events and “climate sensitive diseases.”
There are innumerable ways that public health and climate issues interconnect—tackling health problems and global environmental problems together is like killing two birds with one stone. As an international organization, WHO is responsible for producing thorough health guidelines and coordinating global health and climate responses. It falls upon each country to determine its role in protecting global health and solutions for environmental challenges they can implement to ensure the safest future.
– Nye Day
Photo: Flickr
8 Facts about Healthcare in Brazil
8 Facts about Healthcare in Brazil
Although Brazil’s healthcare system requires improvement in certain areas, such as the availability of technology and funding, it still serves as a model healthcare system for other countries in South America. With certain improvements, healthcare in Brazil has a promising future.
– Shveta Shah
Photo: Flickr
4 Facts about Homelessness in Nicaragua
4 Facts about Homelessness in Nicaragua
These points mark four facts about homelessness in Nicaragua. There is a strong need for economic improvements in order to reduce the homeless population. The first step is creating more homes for families to stay in and improving the current homes with more available resources. Furthermore, improvements in crop production can help families in agriculture earn a sustainable living.
– Rachel Hernandez
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
10 Facts about Sanitation in Burkina Faso
Over the past decade, Burkina Faso has seen a decrease in poverty from 57.3% in 2003 to 43.7% in 2014. However, sanitation services in the country are still out of reach for many people. Since the 1990s, the government, along with its partners, has been working to improve sanitation in Burkina Faso.
10 Facts about Sanitation in Burkina Faso
While Burkina Faso faces problems with access to sanitation, the situation is improving. Organizations, such as the World Bank, as well as other countries are working with Burkina Faso’s government to improve the situation. However, the current conflict in the country may stall some of its plans for improving the quality of sanitation.
– Joshua Meribole
Photo: Flickr
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene: WASH in Haiti
5 Organizations That Are Working to Improve WASH in Haiti:
There is still much work to be done in order to ensure that everyone in Haiti has access to adequate water and sanitation facilities. However, these organizations demonstrate that there is hope for WASH in Haiti through passionate humanitarian efforts.
– Kira Lucas
Photo: Flickr
Hunger in Croatia
Fighting Hunger in Croatia by Addressing Poverty
Due to the correlation between poverty and hunger, the Minister of Social Welfare Milanka Opacic launched an initiative in 2015 to combat issues of hunger in Croatia. Part of this initiative included providing free school lunches to all children. As a result of this initiative, the Global Hunger Index in 2015 reported that Croatia, alongside 17 other countries, had reduced the number of people with insecure food sources by half. Furthermore, in 2016, the Global Hunger Index ranked Croatia as being of low concern for hunger.
The Link Between Hunger in Croatia and Agriculture
However, the problem of hunger in Croatia is not solely caused by poverty. Croatia is a country heavily dependent on food imports. Despite the fact that Croatia has quality agricultural land, plenty of water as well and a diverse climate and landscape, it is unable to produce enough food for the consumption needs of citizens. Based on its resources, Croatia should be a major exporter of agricultural goods; instead, Croatia imports 3.5 billion euros worth of food. One main cause of insufficient agriculture production in Croatia is inadequate and ineffective management of land. Due to this mismanagement, Croatian agricultural estates remain small, fragmented, underdeveloped and ultimately unproductive. Croatia suffers from agricultural stunting as a result of depopulated rural areas, a poor market value chain and outdated technology.
These issues will perpetually tie Croatia to food imports and fundamentally prevent the nation from being agriculturally independent. From an economic or trade perspective, this import dependence is not a problem. Every country in the world imports goods that it cannot produce domestically. However, in the era of COVID-19, heavy reliance on imports raises concerns; especially when the import is something as important and life-sustaining as food.
Steps Towards a Secure Croatia
While initiatives combating hunger in Croatia have made great domestic progress through increasing access to impoverished communities, there is still work to do. Experts call on Croatia to extend their hunger policies and focus on investing in domestic agricultural production. Croatia has already proven to be a country prone to hunger and it simply cannot afford to be self-sufficient in the provision of food in order to survive potential events like security threats, natural disasters or resource depletion.
Croatia has indisputably improved remarkably in regards to hunger since the 2008 recession. However, there is still a long way to go. This work requires funding, research and dedication; if successful, these efforts will result in an agriculturally independent and secure Croatia.
– Lily Jones
Photo: Flickr
4 Facts About Poverty in Norway
USA Today ranked Norway, a European nation known for its beautiful national parks, winter sports and northern lights, eighth on the list of Top 25 Richest Countries in the World. The average life expectancy for a Norwegian at birth is 82.5 years, over a decade more than the global average. Norway is also one of the countries with the lowest child mortality rate. Impressively, Norway also has a very low poverty rate (at 0.5% as of 2017). However, contrary to the conventional image of Norway being a very affluent country, many Norwegians still live in poverty. Here are four facts about poverty in Norway.
4 Facts About Poverty in Norway
Looking Ahead
Although Norway has a very small poverty rate, the nation still experiences poverty: more specifically, poverty in Norway’s immigrant communities. One way Norway can address poverty is by helping ease the transition of immigrants. Potential methods include more school funding, free or low-cost language lessons and an expansion of the job market. An example of a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Norway’s poor is Care International’s Norwegian chapter, a global group whose volunteers participate in humanitarian aid and poverty-fighting projects. Being such an affluent and progressive country, with some more money, time and energy, Norway can be on the track to lowering its poverty rate to zero.
– Kia Wallace
Photo: Pixabay