Scientific understanding of the links between climate change and adverse human health impacts is increasing, but there are many gaps in our knowledge. At NIEHS, we are engaged in multiple activities with other government agencies, international research and policy organizations, academia, and nongovernmental organization stakeholders to identify these knowledge gaps, craft research agenda to address them, communicate findings, and work with decision makers to incorporate this information into sound health policy and actions.
NIEHS Climate Change Activities
Department of Health and Human Services Climate Change Activities
- Climate Change and Human Health Working Group
- Trans-NIH (National Institutes of Health) Working Group on Climate Change and Health
- President's Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children Subcommittee on Climate Change
Federal Interagency Climate Change Activities
- Climate Change Adaptation Task Force
- United States Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)
- Climate Change and Human Health Group (CCHHG)
- Communication, Education, and Engagement
- National Climate Assessment (NCA)
- Strategic Planning
International Climate Change Activities
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
- USGEO (Global Earth Observations) Health and Environment Community of Practice
NIEHS Climate Change Activities
Climate Change and Human Health Program
The NIEHS’ Climate Change and Human Health program provides coordination and leadership for NIEHS-supported research and activities related to the human health impacts of climate change. This program also coordinates NIEHS climate change and health collaborations across NIEHS, NIH, and other federal agencies.
Department of Health and Human Services Climate Change Activities
Climate Change and Human Health Working Group
The HHS Climate Change and Health Working Group coordinates climate change related activities across the Department and informs the senior leadership about major initiatives and scientific advances in this area. We contribute to this workgroup as a member and as HHS representative on major federal climate change initiatives.
Trans-NIH (National Institutes of Health) Working Group on Climate Change and Health
The Trans-NIH Working Group on Climate Change and Health is a cooperative effort focused on the current and future role of the NIH institutes and centers in climate change-related biomedical research. We co-chair this group with the Fogarty International Center. NIH supports a wide variety of research projects that are relevant to the health effects of climate change. These projects represent an ongoing platform from which NIH can begin to evolve a coherent research strategy including the identification of gaps and priorities for future investments. Activities that support the development of this strategy include research portfolio analysis, literature surveys, interagency discussions, stakeholder engagement, and workshops and conferences on climate change and global health.
NIH Participants: NIEHS, FIC, NIAMS, NIH OD, NICHD, NIMHD, NHLBI, NIA, NIAID, NLM, NIDA, NHGRI, NIMH, NIGMS, NEI
Federal Interagency Climate Change Activities
Climate Change Adaptation Task Force
The Climate Change Adaptation Task Force is an interagency group chaired by the White House Council on Environmental Quality, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The group released a Progress Report of the Interagency Climate Change Adaptation Task Force: Recommended Actions in Support of a National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy making recommendations on how federal agencies can better prepare for the impacts of climate change. Efforts are now underway to develop Implementation Plans for this strategy. We represented the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on the Task Force, and continue as part of the implantation team.
U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)
www.globalchange.gov
NIEHS participates as one of 13 Federal agencies in the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) , representing the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as principal. The USGCRP coordinates and integrates Federal research on changes in the global environment and their implications for society. The USGCRP began as a presidential initiative in 1989 and was mandated by Congress in the Global Change Research Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-606), which called for "a comprehensive and integrated United States research program which will assist the Nation and the world to understand, assess, predict, and respond to human-induced and natural processes of global change." Since its inception, the USGCRP has supported research and observational activities in collaboration with several other national and international science programs.
Interagency Cross-Cutting Group on Climate Change and Human Health (CCHHG)
http://www.globalchange.gov/what-we-do/climate-change-health
The Interagency Cross-Cutting Group on Climate Change and Human Health (CCHHG) is a working group of the USGCRP. The CCHHG focuses on all impacts of climate change on public health to define research and scientific priorities across the Federal government related to the human health consequences of climate change. The CCHHG identifies current knowledge gaps and helps to set priorities for data monitoring and integration, public health adaptation, and risk communication and education. We co-chair the CCHHG along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Communications, Education, and Engagement
The USGCRP Communications, Education, and Engagement team leads the efforts of the USGCRP in these areas, including those related to the National Climate Assessment, Strategic Planning, and the development of interagency tools and tactics. We represent HHS in participating on this team.
National Climate Assessment (NCA)
The Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA) is a status report on climate change science and its impacts based on observations from across the country and comparisons to predictions from climate system models. The NCA is coordinated through the USGCRP. We participates in the NCA in a variety of ways including developing technical input, writing, and review.
USGCRP Strategic Planning
We participated on multiple USGCRP writing teams that developed the new strategic plan , which restructures the USGCRP “to improve research for decision making and to better meet the needs of the Nation.” As principal for HHS, we are also involved in implementation of the new strategic plan.
International Climate Change Activities
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is an environmental treaty produced at the United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development, with the objective of stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere and confronting climate change. NIEHS participates as the primary health representative to the U.S. delegation to the UNFCCC.
U.S. Group on Earth Observations (GEO) Health and Environment Community of Practice (CoP)
The Health and Environment Community of Practice is made up of members from national and international organizations that are using environmental observations to improve health decision-making processes. We participate as a representative of HHS.
Related document: Protecting Human Health in a Changing Climate (3MB)
to Top