Climate Change, Global Justice, and Health Inequities

Abstract

This chapter explains the role of human activities in driving climate change, and some of its most significant impacts. It discusses justice issues raised by climate change, including causal responsibility, future development rights, the distribution of climate change harms, and intergenerational inequity. The chapter also provides a status update on current health inequities, noting the now recognized role of political, economic, commercial, and social factors in determining health. This section also discusses environmental epidemiology and the shift to eco-social approaches and eco-epidemiology, noting that while eco-epidemiologists have begun to research the influence of climate change on health, this research has not yet considered in depth the influence of social systems. The chapter concludes with an overview of how climate change exacerbates existing health inequities, focusing on the health implications of significant climate change impacts, including extreme weather events, rising sea levels, heat stress, vector-borne diseases, and food insecurity.