HIGH Horizons

👏 Thank you to everyone who made our recent European Climate-Health Cluster workshop on communicating with policymakers so informative and valuable, including Alba Godfrey, Kim van Daalen, PhD Leire Pajín Iraola, Peter Löeffler, and Aleksandra Kazmierczak. And thank you to our fellow climate and health cluster projects for their ongoing inspiration and collaboration: @BlueAdaptEU CATALYSE Project CLIMOS Project IDAlert and the TRIGGER EU Project. Read more about what we learned in the blog ⤵️

Hot off the blog press: HIGH Horizons highlights from October's Climate And Health Africa Conference (CHAC) in Harare, Zimbabwe - the first conference in history to focus solely on the intersection of climate change and health in Africa. The conference, held from 29-31 October, in Harare, Zimbabwe, was hosted by Centre for Sexual Health and HIV AIDS Research (CeSHHAR) Zimbabwe, in collaboration with the Zimbabwean Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife and the Ministry of Health and Childcare. Read more about the accomplishments of our researchers Dr Fortunate Machingura, PhD and PhD Jetina Juliet Tsvaki of The Centre for Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Research Zimbabwe (CeSHHAR Zimbabwe), Dr Jørn Toftum of DTU - Technical University of Denmark, Dr Nicholas Brink University of the Witwatersrand, and Lebo Radebe on our website ⤵️ https://lnkd.in/e5CZZe8n   📌 Learn more about HIGH Horizons and our mission: www.high-horizons.eu   #PublicHealth #MaternalHealth #MNCH #MNH #ClimateHealth #Pregnancy #ExtremeHeat   Take a look at our research consortium partners ⤵ Ghent University Wits RHI Wits Planetary Health Research Lund University Karolinska Institutet World Health Organization University of Graz Aga Khan Health Services The Centre for Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Research Zimbabwe (CeSHHAR Zimbabwe) DTU - Technical University of Denmark University of Thessaly   European Climate-Health Cluster ⤵ @BlueAdaptEU, TRIGGER EU Project, CATALYSE Project, CLIMOS Project, and IDAlert

Today, the European Climate-Health Cluster is hosting the first session of its second thematic workshop, dedicated to Training on #ScienceforPolicy, organised by Working Group 1: Science Translation to Policy.   Science for Policy (S4P) refers to the process of transferring scientific information to policymakers to create evidence-informed policies. This is a key focus of the 6 projects @BlueAdaptEU, CATALYSE Project, CLIMOS Project, HIGH Horizons, IDAlert, and TRIGGER EU Project that form the Cluster.   In this session, five speakers—including three external to the Cluster—will deliver their insights into Science for Policy:   👉 Alba Godrey, from the @BlueAdaptEU project and Senior Project Coordinator at EuroHealthNet, will provide a brief overview and practical advice on how researchers can effectively engage with policymakers and processes, using their research to inform policymaking. 👉 Kim van Daalen, PhD, from the IDAlert project and Postdoctoral researcher at Barcelona Supercomputing Center, will share examples of best practices in Science for Policy, drawing on insights from the The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change. 👉 Leire Pajín Iraola will share her perspective as a Member of the European Parliament. 👉 Peter Löffler, Policy Officer at DG CLIMA, will discuss the current state and direction of EU policymaking and action in this field, helping participants identify ways to contribute effectively. 👉Aleksandra Kazmierczak, Expert in climate change and human health at the European Environment Agency, will introduce the European Climate and Health Observatory initiative and outline opportunities for the research community to contribute to its strategic objectives. The session will be moderated by @Debra Jackson from the HIGH Horizons project and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, U. of London Medicine. We look forward to an insightful and inspiring session, equipping researchers with the tools to contribute to more robust, evidence-based policies that advance better health outcomes across Europe. #EUclimateandHealth

🇬🇷 Congratulations to our Greek researchers are in have been picked up in the news in Greece! Here's a translation of their LinkedIn thread: "Read below the interview of the president of National Public Health Organisation in Greece, Prof. Christos Hadjichristodoulou, on the issue of the climate crisis and the impacts on public health, where he mentions the action of the Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology, University of Thessaly, within the framework of the European HIGH Horizons program, which, through a birth series study, will study and correlate exposure to extreme temperatures with pregnancy outcome." 👇

🌍 Our Research in the Spotlight: Safeguarding Maternal and Newborn Health Amid Climate Change We are proud to see The Irish Independent highlight our groundbreaking study, published in Nature Medicine (Springer Nature). This research, led by Dr. Darshnika Lakhoo, addresses the urgent health risks posed by rising temperatures for pregnant women and newborns. It’s a powerful call to action for policymakers and public health leaders globally. Key findings include: 👶 Pre-term births: A 1°C rise in temperature increases risk by 4%, and during heatwaves, by 26%. 🌍 Global disparity: Effects are 50% worse in low-income countries, exposing the unequal toll of climate change. ⬆️ Maternal risks: Higher temperatures lead to a 28% increased risk of gestational diabetes and nearly 50% increased risk of congenital anomalies. Prof. Matthew Chersich, Research Professor and Executive Director at Wits Planetary Health Research, stresses: "Heat exposure is a public health emergency, and we must act to protect the vulnerable." This pivotal study reflects the strength of global collaboration, with contributions from esteemed institutions and partners: University of the Witwatersrand, HIGH Horizons EU, Burnet Institute, Monash University, University of Sydney, The Centre for Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Research Zimbabwe (CeSHHAR Zimbabwe), Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Ghent University, Trinity College Dublin, University of Oslo, University of Botswana (UB), University of Pretoria , South African Medical Research Council, University of Graz, University of Bremen, and University of Canterbury. 📖 Read the article: https://lnkd.in/e9YXGVWg 📘 Access the full study: https://lnkd.in/gNGDvpTZ Together, we can drive transformative change to protect maternal and newborn health in our warming world. #PublicHealth #MaternalHealth #ClimateHealth #ExtremeHeat #GlobalHealth #WitsPHR

Check out Dr Gloria Maimela (MBBCH,MBA) of Wits RHI's research on pregnancy and health featured by Wellcome Trust👇

Pregnant people are some of the most vulnerable to extreme heat, which is exacerbated by climate change. As the world warms, we must find ways to protect them. There are things that can be done at an individual level, such as drinking more water. But change must also happen at a broader policy level. Research can help provide solutions. Dr Gloria Maimela, Director of Climate and Health at Wits RHI in South Africa, is working on Wellcome-funded research aimed at achieving just that. Learn more about Gloria’s research: https://lnkd.in/e5QW_erz

Our latest digest is packed with job and funding opportunities, new research and resources, news and more 🙌 Don't forget to subscribe for monthly roundups of #HeatHealth news directly in your inbox 👇 https://lnkd.in/eyKiiuY2 World Meteorological Organization World Health Organization Heat Resilience & Performance Centre NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration COP29 Azerbaijan UN-Habitat (United Nations Human Settlements Programme) Digital Square at PATH Copernicus ECMWF C40 Cities Wellcome Trust The Rockefeller Foundation

Looking forward to participating in this exciting session!!

Important findings by the HIGH Horizons EU group: not only do we have significant increases in #preterm births but also in chronic diseases like #diabetes. We need to prepare for a world in which we're ready to prevent and treat these health outcomes. AKA doubling down on primary healthcare services!