With a tragic series of extreme weather events
and natural disasters, as well as the emergence
or re-emergence of disease threats, recent
history has been a harsh reminder of the
critical linkages between human health and
environmental conditions, as well as the longterm
and immediate human, social and economic
costs of ignoring these.
Some 60% of the world’s vital ecosystems are
degraded or being subjected to unsustainable
pressures, concludes the recent Health
Synthesis Report of the Millennium Ecosystem
Assessment, a project involving 1300 scientists
worldwide and UN agencies including the
United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP) and World Health Organization (WHO).
These ‘services’ refer to the complex biological
mechanisms that sustain clean air, fertile soils
and water resources for daily life, and provide
us with the basics of food, fi bre, fuels and
medicines.
As we degrade our environmental benefi ts, we
are lagging behind in providing the preventive
public health strategies that we need to protect
us against the resulting health risks. Potentially
avoidable environmental risks currently cause
almost a quarter of the total burden of disease.
The greatest impacts are on children and other
vulnerable populations in developing countries.