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Environment, Climate Change and Health

We pursue a healthier environment by strengthening health sector leadership, building mechanisms for political and social support and monitoring progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals regarding environmental threats to health.

About us

Technical areas of work

Air Quality, Energy and Health

Chemical Safety and Health

Children’s environmental health

Climate Change and Health

Health and migration

One Health Initiative

Radiation and health

Water Sanitation and Health (WASH)

Settings & populations

Highlights

Departmental update

Strengthening One Health through coordinated action on implementation, science, policy and financing

18 – 23 May 2026

Health, climate change, air quality and energy at the 79th World Health Assembly

News

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First-ever WHO Forum unites 800+ Collaborating Centres for stronger scientific collaboration

Departmental update

Strengthening One Health through coordinated action on implementation, science, policy and financing

WHO and France shift One Health vision to action with new high-impact initiatives

Departmental update

R&D roadmaps for pathogen families to reduce uncertainty about the next pandemic and boost coordinated global R&D preparedness

Speech

WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the Regional Ecological Summit (RES2026): High level panel – 22 April 2026

Features

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Jobod, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Honouring home: a Marshallese voice for climate justice

Events

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ATACH High-Level Strategic Meeting

18 May 2026 08:00 – 09:00 UTC Time

Evidence to action: Preventing lead poisoning to save lives

18 – 23 May 2026

Health, climate change, air quality and energy at the 79th World Health Assembly

Commentaries

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20 November 2025

World Toilet Day: Protecting health through safe sanitation

Videos

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Increasing One Health awareness with short films, by WHO's Regional Director WPRO

Increasing One Health awareness with short films, by WHO's Regional Director WPRO

A person illuminated by a spotlight, seen from above, surrounded by swirling colourful lines.

Together for health. Stand with science.

Child hand touching a heart shape on a bus window

From commitment to action: World report on promoting the health of refugees and migrants

health for all - film festival student prize

Our strategy

WHO global strategy on health, environment and climate change: the transformation needed to improve lives and wellbeing sustainably through healthy environments

The new strategy is timely – it responds to and is in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the GPW13.

Calls for

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Call for consultant

Call for consultant – Data analyst to assist with updating WHO energy access databases to support SDG 7 and related health impact monitoring and reporting

Call for consultant

Call for consultant – Air pollution burden of disease, health statistics and epidemiology

Publications

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World report on promoting the health of refugees and migrants: Monitoring progress on the WHO global action plan

The World report on promoting the health of refugees and migrants: Monitoring progress on the WHO global action plan provides the first global baseline...

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World report on promoting the health of refugees and migrants: monitoring progress on the WHO global action plan: executive summary

The World report on promoting the health of refugees and migrants: Monitoring progress on the WHO global action plan provides the first global baseline...

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Air quality monitoring for enhanced understanding of health impacts and beyond

Monitoring air quality (for example collecting continuous and quality data) is integral and critical to detecting air pollutants and to ensuring information...

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Protecting Health and Biodiversity through Nature-based Solutions

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Infographics highlight

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No single sector can tackle threats alone

Human health. Animal health. Environmental health. Inseparable

One Health starts with what you do today

Tools

AIDE-MÉMOIRES: Briefs by environment, climate change and health topic for country action

Essential information to support action

Air pollution and health training toolkit for health workers (APHT)

A set of materials designed to enable health workers, in both the clinical and public health fields, to understand the health risks of air pollution and identify risk reduction measures.

Compendium of WHO and other UN guidance on health and environment

Global repository of interventions for creating healthier environments and improving health. It provides an overview and easy access of 500 actions, and a framework for thinking about health and environment interventions.

Graphic banner of the Health and Environment scorecards

Health and environment country scorecards

The Health and environment scorecards aim to provide a quick snapshot of where countries stand on managing six major environmental threats to health: air pollution, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), climate change, exposure to chemicals, radiation, and occupational health.

HEAT tool for walking and cycling

Health Economic Assessment Tool (HEAT) for walking and cycling: HEAT for walking and cycling is a user-friendly, web-based tool used to estimate the health and economic impacts of increased walking and cycling.

Doctors attend to patients in the COVID-19 ICU of the Philippine General Hospital in Manila. They are among the first Filipinos to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the country

Occupational hazards in the health sector

This e-tool is intended for use by people in charge of occupational health and safety for health workers at the national, subnational and facility levels and for health workers who want to know what WHO and ILO recommend for the protection of their health and safety

SunSmart Global UV App

Free application for mobile devices that describes the level of solar UV radiation at a specific location. It also provides time slots when to apply sun protection measures, in an effort to reduce the global burden of skin cancer and UV-related eye damage.

screenshot-map-who-ilo-rectangle

WHO/ILO Joint Estimates of the Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury

The WHO/ILO Joint Estimates quantify the number of deaths and amount of health loss (disability-adjusted life years or DALYs) caused by occupational risk factors.

Children under solar panels

WHO Manifesto for a healthy recovery from COVID-19

WHO prescriptions for a healthy, green recovery from COVID-19 that will help steer governments towards a healthier, fairer, and greener world.

Our work

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Promoting biodiversity conservation for climate and health

Raising awareness on ultraviolet radiation

Boosting climate-resilient water, sanitation and hygiene services

Building capacity on climate change and human health

Campaigns and initiatives

thermometer on orange sky background

Flagship Initiative against extreme heat and related environmental health risks in workplaces and major events

Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH)

BreatheLife: A global campaign for clean air

International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week 2025

WHO – WMO Joint Climate and Health Programme

Q&As

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Electronic waste: Digital dumpsites and children’s health

Chemical safety: Lead poisoning

Air pollution: Reducing short-lived climate pollutants

WHO’s Fifth WHO Air Quality Database of over 6000 Cities

Chemical safety: Pesticides

Fact sheets

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Heat and health

Refugee and migrant health

16 December 2025

Household air pollution

24 October 2024

Mercury

Facts in pictures

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13 September 2024

Children's environmental health

E-waste and Child Health

Urban Health Initiative: Accra story

10 chemicals of public health concern

Health topics

Chemical safety

Children's environmental health

Environmental health

Health impact assessment

Radiation emergencies

Refugee and migrant health

Ultraviolet radiation

Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)