Seminar: Co-benefits of climate change interventions for public health

Seminar: 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Refreshments and networking: 2:00pm - 2:30pm (Optional)
Map showing room location
If you are unable to attend this event in person, please register to attend the event online.

The Cabot Institute for the Environment and the Elizabeth Blackwell Institute for Health Research invite you to attend the next Climate Change and Health seminar. Dr Patricia Albers and Dr Lucy Anderson will explore how community-led climate adaptation and local interventions can improve health and wellbeing, highlighting practical approaches to building resilience alongside the mental health co-benefits of climate action.

Dr Patricia Albers - Exploring community-led strategies for climate adaptation.

Patricia Albers is a Senior Research Associate within the Centre for Public Health at the University of Bristol, she recently completed her NIHR SPHR Post-Doctoral Launching Fellowship. She is a quantitative public health researcher with a strong research background in the environmental determinants of health. She has a particular interest in the impacts of climate change on health and well‑being, focusing on children and young people and on strategies to prepare for and adapt to these impacts.

Abstract

Climate change poses a major threat to health, largely through the growing frequency and severity of extreme weather events. Community‑led responses to climate change are often highlighted as important for improving health and reducing inequalities; however, there is limited research examining how these initiatives operate in practice, including their achievements and challenges. Here I report on a project which aimed to explore how community‑led actions addressing climate‑related extreme weather can contribute to healthier places and populations in the UK. We are working with three place‑based case studies focused on different extreme weather events—heat, flooding, and cold. All case studies have some focus on health outcomes and health inequalities.

Dr Lucy Anderson - Understanding the mental health co-benefits of local climate interventions.

Lucy Anderson is an NIHR SPHR funded Transdisciplinary Research Fellow in public health and climate change at the University of Bristol. Her research focuses on understanding the potential health co-benefits of interventions designed to adapt to climate change and improve air quality, with particular interests in mental health, health inequalities, and how evidence can inform policy and practice. She previously worked on air quality and health in the NGO sector and serves as the UKRI Regional Clean Air Champion for South West England, supporting collaboration between researchers, policymakers and practitioners.

Abstract

Climate action is often framed as a way to reduce emissions and avoid future harms, but well-designed local climate interventions such as home retrofit programmes, greener neighbourhoods and active travel initiatives have the potential to support mental health while helping communities become more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Yet, these wider health co-benefits are not yet consistently measured or routinely used in decision-making. Building this evidence base is important for designing climate adaptation and mitigation measures that maximise health gains and reduce inequalities.

This talk will present findings from an ongoing mixed-methods research project exploring the mental health co-benefits of local climate interventions in England. Drawing on local authority policy analysis, stakeholder workshops and community interviews, it will examine how mental health is currently considered in local climate action, the opportunities and barriers to capturing mental health outcomes, and how stronger evidence could help shape policies that deliver healthier, fairer and more resilient communities.