Spanish
Copenhagen, June 11 (EFE).- The World Health Organization (WHO) launched this Wednesday in Reykjavik a new pan-European commission whose purpose will be to respond to the effects of climate change on health.
A group of eleven advisors led by former Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir will be tasked with offering pragmatic and economic solutions to address the climate threat.
"It's time to admit an undeniable truth: the climate crisis is a health crisis. It's already killing us and, without urgent action, it will be much worse," said the WHO-Europe director, Hans Kluge, during the presentation.
Kluge highlighted that the commission will explore "a wide range of new and existing solutions for the health sector" and mentioned everything from waste reduction to the construction of energy-efficient centers or promoting early warning systems for heat waves.
According to WHO data, one in three deaths linked to heat waves occur in the European region - which also includes Russia and several former Soviet republics - and a tenth of its urban population lives in flood-prone areas.
"We must recognize that the interaction between rising temperatures, air pollution, and changing ecosystems resulting from human-induced climate change is already affecting the health and well-being of communities in the European region and around the world," said Katrín Jakobsdóttir.
The president of the new commission highlighted that more than 100,000 people in 35 countries in the European region died from the heat in 2022 and 2023.
The commission will have Andrew Haines, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, as its chief scientific advisor, and its members include the former director of the European Environment Agency (EEA), Hans Bruyninckx.
