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The challenge

WHO estimates that, between 2030 and 2050, climate change will likely cause an additional 250 000 deaths a year from malnutrition, disease and heat stress.

Climate change impacts are most likely to affect countries in the Global South severely, particularly in Africa. Within countries, disadvantaged populations are least able to adapt to a changing environment. Those most at risk include women, children, older people and people with pre-existing health conditions. Climate change is therefore magnifying existing health inequalities, both between and within countries. The World Bank estimates that a warmer climate could lead to at least 21 million additional deaths by 2050 from five health risks: extreme heat, stunting, diarrhoea, malaria and dengue.

COVID-19 illustrated the need for effective pandemic preparedness. Global health security is dependent on effective pandemic prevention, preparedness and response capabilities within countries to prevent outbreaks from escaping out of control.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), whereby infections do not respond to commonly used treatments, is already a major public health challenge in sub-Saharan Africa. Many childhood infections can no longer be treated with standard antibiotics, requiring use of more expensive or more toxic alternatives. In 2019, bacterial AMR caused 250,000 deaths and contributed to more than a million deaths in the region.

Our contributions

We have established a new programme focused on the health impacts of climate change in multiple African settings. We look at the impacts of extreme heat on vulnerable populations, and adaptation to minimise these impacts.

During  COVID-19 pandemic we pivoted our research and contributed to multiple vaccine trials as well as the WHO’s Solidarity Therapeutics Trial, generating evidence that made important contributions to national and global policymaking. Our  clinical trial infrastructure is a critical resource that can be deployed in the event of a new pandemic.

We have also made major contributions to global policy discussions on pandemic preparedness and the need to address inequities in access to new medical interventions, including vaccines, when global pandemics arise.

We have contributed to several clinical trials of new vaccines, therapeutics or treatment regimens for globally and regionally important AMR pathogens. These include trials of new TB vaccines such as M72/AS01E and shortened treatments for drug-resistant TB, as well as vaccine and drug trials targeting gonococcal infections.

All Climate Change and Global Health Projects

Climate Change and Global Health

HIGH Horizons (Heat Indicators for Global Health) Study

HIGH Horizons: Heat Indicators for Global Health.  Monitoring, Early Warning Systems and health facility interventions for pregnant and postpartum women, infants and young children and health workers. Rationale The HIGH Horizons Study is designed to address critical knowledge gaps regarding the direct and indirect effects of heat exposure on maternal,…

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Climate Change and Global Health

Heat Adaptation for Pregnant women and Infants (HAPI) study

Heat Adaptation for Pregnant women and Infants (HAPI) study Summary of the study Temperatures in Southern Africa are rising at twice the global rate, with major health implications for maternal and newborn health. In these conditions, the options for adaptation are limited, and single-component interventions are likely to be poorly…

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Climate Change and Global Health

South African Population Research Infrastructure Network (SAPRIN)

South African Population Research Infrastructure Network (SAPRIN): A National Research Infrastructure of Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) Nodes. Rationale Research in the human and social sciences plays a crucial role in driving social, economic, and cultural development and transformation in South Africa. The overarching goal is to enhance the…

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Climate Change and Global Health
Vaccine Preventable Diseases

CHAMNHA (Climate, Heat, and Maternal and Neonatal Health in Africa)

Investigating the impact of environmental heat exposure around the time of childbirth on women's and children's health a community and facility-based qualitative inquiry in Burkina Faso and Kenya. Rationale The frequency and intensity of heat waves have increased in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and are set to escalate in the coming…

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Climate Change and Global Health
Infectious Diseases

South African Population Research Infrastructure Network (SAPRIN)

South African Population Research Infrastructure Network (SAPRIN): A GRT-INSPIRED Sub Study of COVID-19 Perceptions, Impacts and Seroprevalence Among Residents of Atteridgeville, Melusi and Hillbrow in Gauteng, South Africa Rationale The global COVID-19 pandemic is an exceptional emergency, and presents a serious risk to human health and livelihoods, especially in countries…

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Climate Change and Global Health

The HEat and HEalth African Transdisciplinary (HEAT) Center

The HEat and HEalth African Transdisciplinary (HE2AT) Center is a five-year project funded by the National Institutes of Health, Common Research Fund. It was launched in 2022 and consists of a data science and analytics platform that helps understand how extreme heat affects vulnerable groups in Africa. The consortium includes…

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Latest Publications

A systematic review and meta-analysis of heat exposure impacts on maternal, fetal and neonatal health

Authors

Lakhoo DP, Brink N, Radebe L, Craig MH, Pham MD, Haghighi MM, Wise A, Solarin I, Luchters S, Maimela G, Chersich MF, Heat-Health Study Group & HIGH Horizons Study Group. (2024)

Abstract

Climate Change has severe and wide-ranging health impacts, especially for vulnerable groups. Despite growing evidence of heat-associated adverse maternal and neonatal health outcomes, there remains a lack of synthesis quantifying associations and identifying specific risk periods. We systematically reviewed the literature on heat impacts on maternal, fetal, and neonatal health, and quantified impacts through meta-analyses.

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A systematic review and meta-analysis of heat exposure impacts on maternal, fetal and neonatal health

Lakhoo DP, Brink N, Radebe L, Craig MH, Pham MD, Haghighi MM, Wise A, Solarin I, Luchters S, Maimela G, Chersich MF, Heat-Health Study Group & HIGH Horizons Study Group.…

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Association between ambient air pollution a week prior to delivery and preterm birth using a nationwide study in Sweden

Aziz N, Stafoggia M, Stephansson O, Roos N, Kovats S, Chersich M, Filippi V, Part C, Nakstad B, Hajat S, Ljungman P, de Bont J. (2024)

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Effects of ambient heat exposure on risk of all-cause mortality in children younger than 5 years in Africa: a pooled time-series analysis

Brimicombe C, Wieser K, Monthaler T, Jackson D, De Bont J, Chersich MF, Otto IM. (2024)

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School health and nutrition environments: A multicountry survey in five countries of sub-Saharan Africa region-Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, South Africa, Sudan, and Tanzania

Noor R, Paulo HA, Shinde S, Tadesse AW, Tinkasimile A, Hussen Y, Ngeba J, Sherfi H, Drysdale R, Mwanyika-Sando M, Codjia P, Chitekwe S, Bärnighausen T, Sharma D, Fawzi WW.…

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