The Lancet: Humanizing health and climate change
Editorial Board

“The 2018 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change by Nick Watts and colleagues published on Nov. 28 provides a snapshot and direction of travel for 41 global indicators at the intersection between health and climate change. … Health potentially holds the key to humanizing climate change conversations, contributing to more rapid and effective behavior change — and it therefore matters how it is positioned. … Individual engagement and action contributes to a growing wave of change. This does not negate the need for engagement at international policy level and for governments to better use their powers, but this can be accelerated and complemented by harnessing the collective voice of individuals. The Lancet Countdown on health and climate change reports on the facts and data. Using those to capture imagination and to influence behavior change increases impact. Although much of the damage already caused to our planet may be irreversible, it is still within reach to alter the course of the next generation’s inheritance. Using health to humanize the narrative will help realize that goal” (11/28).