Climate action is health action and the legacy of the COP 28 climate conference opening later this week in Dubai should be a commitment to a healthier planet.
That's the message from UN health agency WHO, which said on Monday that negotiators at the upcoming meeting must recognize their responsibility "for the health of populations worldwide".
"Leaders must deliver in Dubai, providing the strong health outcomes their peoples expect and their economies urgently need," said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
According to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), some 3.5 billion people - nearly half of humanity - live in areas highly vulnerable to climate change, and curbing greenhouse gas emissions is urgent to mitigate the disastrous health effects of global warming.