Understanding the Link Between Climate Change and Public Health Vulnerabilities

Dear Colleagues,

Climate change-related exposures—such as extreme weather events, extreme heat and cold, rising sea levels, reduced air quality, and changes in weather patterns—have profound impacts on public health determinants and outcomes. Such determinants include, but are not limited to, housing quality and stability, education, sources of livelihood, food and water security, and migration and conflict. Public health outcomes include mental illness, infectious disease, malnutrition, neurodevelopmental issues, respiratory illness, allergies, injuries and fatalities, poor pregnancy and birth outcomes, and chronic conditions (e.g., cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, and cancers). Climate change has also been identified as a threat multiplier, exacerbating the preexisting vulnerabilities faced by individuals, communities, and populations that shape the health disparities that stem from structural inequities. Despite the World Health Organization identfying climate change as a fundamental threat to human health, there is a dearth of research connecting climate change to preexisting public health vulnerabilities. This Special Issue aims to address this gap in the literature by exploring mechanistic pathways, lived experiences, and potential interventions to address climate change-related vulnerabilites and health disparites. The Special Issue will include a diverse array of high-quality and innovative manuscripts, including commentaries, community-based perspectives, case studies, literature reviews, and original quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods analyses.

Dr. Gabriella Y. Meltzer
Dr. Nadav L. Sprague
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.