8.E. Workshop: Digital Public Health and Climate change: The European Framework made easy
Authors:   Organised by: Universidade Nova de Lisboa (Portugal), EUPHA-ENV,   Chair persons: Luís Lapão (Portugal), Marija Jevtic (EUPHA-ENV)
Published: October 2023

European Union has defined a strategy to tackle climate change - the European Green Deal (GD). However, this framework needs to put in place, engaging cities, public health professionals and new technologies vendors to incorporate the Green New Deal within the city dynamics to make it more healthy friendly. Climate change, although globally threating to the human population and biocenosis, yet has some positive sides if the unity achieved through the GD can be named so. This document strongly confirms the path to be navigated. What is the role of digital health and what is the possible contribution of digital public health? This European Commission document envisages Europe as the first climate-neutral continent while strengthening its economy, taking care of and improving its inhabitants’ health. The GD insists on the care for nature and a clear view that no one should be left out and left behind. This workshop point out that, even we have large regulatory framework on clean air, air pollution in the European Union continues to be the top environmental threat to health, leading to approx 400,000 early deaths annually and high health costs. Over 20 of the 27 EU countries fail to keep air quality standards, which for key pollutants are already less strict than what the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends. But climate change brings other threats. In this workshop we will firstly explore the richness of the GD and its contributions to public health framework in Europe. There were several possible scenarios, out of which two were considered: one based on collaboration and the other, on conflict. Several dimensions were examined to address both cooperation instruments and the consequences of non-cooperation: Energy production (e.g., conventional versus renewable) and use; water resources and food security; the environment (air quality) and the impact on health; Population and migration flow. Secondly, the potential of the Smart City will be explored as a tool to integrate dynamic public health interventions in the city leveraging the interactions of many citizens. An example from diabetes management will be considered within the Smart City concept. Finally, we will present tree examples of the dynamics of people and places will be addressed. It is important to note that health sector has an opportunity to not only prevent further damage from the air pollution and climate crises, but also to improve health outcomes by motivating people to contribute to decarbonizing, building climate resilience, and amplifying the message around the interdependency between climate change and human health. This workshop will present a framework, co-developed by WHO and Health Care Without Harm, for climate-resilient, sustainable health facilities.

Key messages

• Public health is part of the endeavour to tackle climate change, and the cities are an important playground for achieving the sustainability goals at local level aligned with the European Green Deal.

• The smart cities can leverage digital public health interventions to better engage the citizens, integrate care and to improve the cities resilience to cope with climate urgency and urban health.