UN Climate Change Conference, Antalya, Türkiye, 9–20 November 2026
Doctors for the Environment Australia (DEA) is calling on Australia and other nations to put human health at the centre of climate negotiations at COP31, with urgent action to phase out fossil fuels, protect communities from climate impacts and build sustainable health systems.
DEA members will take the medical profession’s voice to COP31, the annual UN climate summit, to press for climate action as a health imperative whose benefits extend well beyond the environment.
Climate change is the greatest threat to human health worldwide. The latest Lancet Countdown report finds that climate-related health harms have escalated over the past decade, with experts calling for climate change to be formally recognised as a global health emergency.
The burning of coal, oil and gas is the main driver of climate change. DEA in a recent report detailed the harms of fossil fuels on human health and the health of the planet, and concluded that to address the harms we must upgrade to clean energy sources.
The following comments can be attributed to Dr Kimberly Humphrey, senior emergency medicine specialist, DEA Co-Chair and ATACH HPA Focal Point.
A note on ATACH: In 2025, DEA joined the Steering Group of the World Health Organization’s Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH), representing Health Professional Associations (HPAs) worldwide.
Why is COP important for health and health care?
“The UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP) is the annual United Nations climate summit, where almost 200 countries negotiate the global response to climate change. Climate change is already affecting our patients through heat, bushfire smoke, flooding, drought and shifting patterns of infectious disease. COP decisions on emissions reduction, adaptation and finance, therefore, have direct consequences for health.
Health must be central to climate negotiations, not an afterthought. Health care also generates around 5% of global emissions, so COP outcomes can help shape how we reduce the environmental footprint of health services while ensuring they remain resilient to climate impacts.”
How can doctors and health professionals shape COP’s impact?
“Health professionals are trusted messengers who see climate impacts in daily practice. We can bring frontline evidence to negotiators and ministers, demonstrating why climate action is essential to protect lives and prevent illness.
Through the WHO ATACH Health Professional Associations constituency, which DEA leads, we are also calling for governments to invest in and protect the health workforce through national climate and health plans. Health professionals need the training, resources and protection to respond to climate emergencies and build resilient, sustainable health systems.”
What are the key priorities for protecting health at COP31?
“By far the top priority is a rapid, funded transition away from fossil fuels, including gas, to limit further climate-related harm to health.
We must also fund health systems to build climate resilience, as well as support them to reduce their emissions. Both depend on providing health professionals with the training, resources and protections they need to respond to climate impacts and deliver sustainable care.
Finally, climate action must protect those most at risk. We must prioritise those most exposed to climate impacts, including people experiencing disadvantage, First Nations communities, and our Pacific neighbours and communities across the Global South.
COP31 must deliver more than empty words. Governments must turn promises into funded action that protects health, strengthens health systems and secures a safer future for all.”
Media contact
DEA Media and Communications Lead, Carmela Ferraro, 0410 703 074/ [email protected]