The climate crisis is a child rights crisis
The RCPCH position statement calls on the leaders of every country and their representatives to make human health central to all climate change mitigation and adaptation actions to protect current and future generations of children and young people. It also calls for all countries to prioritise the delivery of a rapid and just transition away from fossil fuels.
You can support this call to action as an individual by supporting the fossil fuel treaty, a global initiative to phase out fossil fuels and support a just transition.
The unequal burden of climate change
Today, leaders from across the globe meet in Glasgow for COP26 to discuss, reaffirm, and pledge new goals to tackle the climate crisis. Countries will put forward their ambitions for reducing emissions to reach net zero before the middle of the century. These are attempts- arguably much too little and far too late — to safeguard our children’s future. Nonetheless, there is no doubt that climate change will affect us all, yet the burden will fall unequally in terms of geography and, importantly, generation.
“The intersection of climate, child health, and the health inequalities that we are already tackling, is going to make things a million times harder,” says Dr Katie Knight, a paediatric emergency medicine consultant who chairs the advocating for change climate change working group at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, “The patients that we care for have nothing to do with contributing to climate change, but they are the ones that are going to get all of the worst effects.”
‘Not only will the worst effects of climate change be felt the most by those who have contributed the least to carbon emissions, it will hit those who are already struggling the most.’
Youth activists have turned the spotlight on the consequences of inaction with climate change. Like so many of the other issues out of their hands, it is hugely impacting their future. Around the globe, children are denied of their right to the best possible healthcare, clean air, safe water, nutritious and affordable food, and a clean environment where they can stay healthy, making the climate crisis a child rights crisis.
Inheriting a problem not of their own making
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) emphasises the need for international co-operation to ensure children have the best possible health, with particular account taken of the needs of lower-income countries. Evidence shows those living in low- and middle-income countries will face disproportionate increases in extreme weather events and will bear the brunt of losses and damage to health and human life, land, and biodiversity as a result of floods, wildfires and storms. However when ranked by income, the top 50% of states are responsible for 86% of cumulative global CO2 emissions, while the lower half are responsible for just 14%. Wealthy countries generally have better child health and development outcomes, yet their historic and current greenhouse gas emissions threaten the lives of all children. Not only will the worst effects of climate change be felt the most by those who have contributed the least to carbon emissions, it will hit those who are already struggling the most, a reverse of what the UNCRC sets out to do.
‘The babies born globally today face seven times more heatwaves during their lives than their grandparents, inheriting a problem not of their own making.’
The disparity of the effects of climate change are not only evident through a geographical lens. A new report that looks at the difference in how generations will be affected by climate change concluded that under current climate policy, the babies born globally today face seven times more heatwaves during their lives than their grandparents, inheriting a problem not of their own making. The effects of climate change will even be felt by children living in countries with more temperate climates, such in the UK. “We may think of this as a problem within in the Global South, but it is already affecting us as well. We already know that air pollution very badly affects children’s lungs and their lung development,” says Katie, “We did a small study in our hospital where we found that days with high rates of air pollution correlate very strongly with respiratory admissions in the paediatric emergency department.”
The biggest health crisis of our generation
“This is the biggest health crisis of our generation and possibly any generation ever. It’s so all-encompassing, it’s going to affect absolutely every aspect of life,” says Katie. Some of the effects of climate change have already been seen on the doorsteps of people living in the UK. Wildfires in Wales are appearing to burn longer and cause more damage, with Welsh firefighters having to also deal with flood events and landslides from heavy rainfall.
‘Currently 11% of NHS facilities are situated on high-risk flood plains, and this figure is predicted to double in the next 20 years.’
The likelihood of such heavy or intense rainfall in increasing many parts of the UK, particularly in the winter months, due to climate change. This is leading to higher risks of river and surface water flooding. Torrential rainfall caused road disruption and Tube closures in London in October 2021, while in July, Pudding Mill Lane DLR station was submerged under water after thunderstorms.
Currently 11% of NHS facilities are situated on high-risk flood plains, and this figure is predicted to double in the next 20 years. The independent Climate Change Committee has stated that flood resilience in the UK is not keeping pace with the rising risk as these types of events are set to happen more frequently and with more devastating effects.
‘Climate change will be compounded for some children — particularly those living through conflict, those most profoundly impacted by COVID-19 and those experiencing inequality and discrimination.’
Katie recognises that climate change goes far beyond child health: “The number one thing that COP26 needs to do is to keep fossil fuels in the ground. None of the other mitigations matter if we keep extracting fossil fuels and burning them. I’m really glad that both the Lancet Countdown UK policy brief and the RCPCH’s new position statement on climate change include a recommendation for a just transition to end all government subsidies for fossil fuels that doesn’t exacerbate health inequalities.”
Climate change and health inequalities
But it is not only these direct effects of climate change that are most worrying for child health. Climate change will be compounded for some children — particularly those living through conflict, those most profoundly impacted by COVID-19 and those experiencing inequality and discrimination. Climate change is inextricably linked to wider issues of inequality and failures to uphold children’s basic rights.
“Anyone who is interested in health inequalities should be banging the drum about climate change. This is something that is going to exacerbate existing health inequalities,” says Katie, “The risks in the UK are going to be worse in the socio-economically deprived areas, for people who live in poor quality housing, who live next to busy roads, who’s families might not be as economically secure.”
“Everything puts more pressure on health systems. Everything affects health.” — Dr Katie Knight
While the extreme weather impacts are frightening, they are overshadowed by the incalculable indirect effects facing food security, housing quality and health systems: “Everything puts more pressure on health systems. Everything affects health,” says Katie, “When food prices rise and there are food shortages- these things are probably inevitable in the next few years- those families already struggling to put food on the table will suffer. When it’s really hot outside, those living in poor quality housing are going to suffer, and then their health is going to suffer.”
This highlights just how much climate change aligns with the issues already affecting child health outcomes. “Why should paediatricians care, don’t we have enough to worry about, shouldn’t we just concentrate on child health?” asks Katie, “More doctors need to see what a health problem it is. It is absolutely everything to do with health and everything to do with our speciality.”
The 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) was a crucial opportunity to assess, reaffirm and strengthen existing climate change commitments made by the international community. Although there was some progress on health-focused goals at COP26, there is much more commitment needed from Governments to protect our health from this global threat. Worldwide, health professionals are united in calling for emergency action to limit global temperature increases, restore biodiversity, and protect health.
