The Lancet report urges declaring climate health emergency

Between 2016 and 2023, human-induced climate change caused nearly three million heat-related deaths worldwide, according to a reference report published by the British medical journal The Lancet. In response to these findings, researchers and public health experts are calling for governments to formally declare climate change a global health emergency to mobilize coordinated funding and long-term protection for vulnerable healthcare systems.

Three Million Heat Deaths Since the Paris Agreement

The 10th edition of the Lancet Countdown report, which associates 146 researchers across 30 countries, highlights that the negative impacts of global warming on public health are accelerating faster than the international community’s response. Marina Romanello, executive director of the Lancet Countdown scientific project, presented the findings to the press, noting that the data covers the period from the Paris Agreement in 2016 through 2023. During 2023 specifically, a record 710,000 deaths were linked to heat worldwide, surpassing mortality rates from malaria or HIV. More than two-thirds of those 2023 fatalities are directly attributed to human-driven climate change.

To establish these attribution figures, researchers compiled heat-related death statistics reported by individual states and subtracted the mortality that would have occurred without anthropogenic warming, utilizing a counterfactual scenario framework explained by Professor Ollie Jay of the University of Sydney.

The Pandemic-Style Emergency Response Proposal

Because current measures remain too slow and modest, report authors urge the establishment of an emergency intervention framework coordinated between states, similar to pandemic response protocols used by the World Health Organization (WHO). Marina Romanello emphasized that this framework is designed not merely to react to a succession of short-term crises, but to execute a coherent, long-term global strategy that prioritizes health investments in adaptation and economic resilience.

Despite ongoing geopolitical instability that has pushed global warming and its impact on health to the background over the past two years, concrete adaptations are already underway in certain regions. Out of 194 WHO member states, 56 countries have adapted their health systems and implemented early warning frameworks for extreme weather events. Clean energy investments reached $2.1 trillion in 2025—doubling the capital dedicated to fossil fuels—yet fossil fuels still account for 80% of global energy consumption.

Fossil Fuel Air Pollution Contrast Against Clean Energy Progress

While clean energy adoption expands, fossil fuel combustion continues to drive severe environmental health hazards. Air pollution derived from fossil fuels generates roughly 2.73 million deaths annually. Conversely, in at least 77 countries where fossil fuel-related air pollution has dropped since 2016, some 323,000 deaths were successfully averted.

Financial backing for climate-related medical research multiplied sevenfold to reach $316 million in 2024. However, disparities in resource allocation persist. The report shows that 84% of these research funds go to investigators in wealthy nations, leaving the least developed countries—which suffer the most acute health threats from a warming planet—largely underfunded.

Domestically in Canada, wildfire smoke contributed to an annual average of roughly 4,000 deaths between 2021 and 2025, marking a 275% increase compared to the 2003–2012 baseline. Concurrently, 80% of extreme heat days experienced by Canadians in 2025 reduced workplace capacity, triggering an estimated $1.16 billion loss in potential revenue, predominantly concentrated within the construction sector.

Global Subsidies and the Path Forward at COP 31

As policymakers prepare for the upcoming COP 31 summit scheduled for November 9–20, the tension between public health warnings and state-backed financial support for fossil fuels remains a central obstacle. Between 2016 and 2024, 87 analyzed governments, including Canada, allocated a combined $6.2 trillion in net subsidies toward fossil fuel industries, funds that researchers argue could have otherwise fortified healthcare infrastructure and economic adaptation mechanisms.

Avec la 10e édition du rapport du Lancet Countdown maintenant publique, les auteurs et experts appellent à faire du changement climatique une urgence sanitaire mondiale afin que les gouvernements en fassent leur priorité pour financer l’adaptation des systèmes de santé et des économies.