Human health and wellbeing are being increasingly spotlighted as a key consideration in international climate change negotiations. 

OraTaiao: The NZ Climate and Health Council is part of a movement of health professional bodies around the world that are pushing for health to be an integral part of international climate negotiations. Others include the World Health Organisation, the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, and the Global Climate and Health Alliance.

We argue that health, wellbeing and fairness (equity) should be at the centre of international climate negotiations, as well as at the centre of Aotearoa-New Zealand's contribution to global action on climate change. See our submission about Aotearoa-NZ's approach to COP26.

See "COP26 special report on climate change and health: The health argument for climate action" by the World Health Organisation (October 2021).

According to detailed modelling reported in the Lancet (February 2021) “a greater consideration of health in the Nationally Determined Contributions and climate change mitigation policies has the potential to yield considerable health benefits as well as achieve the ‘well below 2°C’ commitment across a range of regional and economic contexts”.