COP31: Climate and Health Get Attention as Funders Raise Over $375 Million

Climate change and its impact on people's health will be key topics at the ongoing 31st session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye. Global health and climate funders have raised over $375 million to tackle health issues caused by climate change.

The funding was announced at the opening of the conference on Monday. It aims to boost efforts to adapt and reduce risks, especially in communities that are vulnerable to extreme heat, air pollution, and diseases linked to climate change.

This announcement comes as experts warn that rising global temperatures and more extreme weather events are putting a huge strain on public health systems.

In Nigeria and many countries, high temperatures have raised public health worries in recent years. The El Niño phenomenon, which warms ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, has added to the concerns of world leaders.

At the opening ceremony, Simon Stiell, executive secretary of UN Climate Change, said the world is facing dangerous heat levels that put millions at risk.

"As today’s important data from the WMO shows, the world is getting dangerously hot. Hundreds of millions of people are exposed to extreme heat across Southern Asia," Mr Stiell said.

He mentioned that heatwaves during the summer in the Northern Hemisphere broke records and resulted in around 50,000 deaths in Europe.

According to him, climate change is now a global health crisis. This includes toxic air pollution, extreme heat, and disasters that overwhelm health services and vital infrastructure.

Mr Stiell pointed out that rising temperatures affect pregnancy, newborns, and maternal health, creating another health disaster linked to climate change.

He blamed the worsening situation on ongoing reliance on fossil fuels and deforestation, warning that vulnerable populations are at increasing risk.

"The impacts of rising heat on pregnancy, newborns and maternal health are another unfolding health disaster which has the fingerprints of the climate crisis all over it," he said.

He added that health will be a major focus at COP31 discussions, led by Türkiye and Australia, building on progress made at COP30 in Belém, Brazil.

The UN climate chief also spoke about the Climate & Health Funders Coalition, which has already given over $200 million to support climate and health initiatives before this new funding announcement.

Mr Stiell stressed that practical solutions like moving to clean energy are essential to cut health risks linked to climate change and reduce costs tied to fossil fuel use.

He urged governments to speed up the shift to cleaner energy, warning that relying on fossil fuels will lead to rising costs for households, businesses, and health systems.

Celeste Saulo, secretary-general of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), also spoke. She said the WMO’s State of the Climate Update 2026 showed clear signs of a worsening climate crisis.

She noted that the last 12 years have been the hottest on record. The past four years, including 2026, are the four warmest years recorded.

According to her, the global average temperature from January to September 2026 was about 1.47 degrees Celsius above the level before industrialization.

Ms Saulo warned that temperatures could rise further this year due to a strong El Niño, with the biggest effects likely felt in 2027.

She added that this El Niño is unusually strong, with forecasts suggesting that sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific could be four times the level needed to declare an El Niño event between November 2026 and January 2027.

The WMO chief also shared other worrying signs, like ocean heat reaching record highs for the tenth consecutive year and sea levels rising to unprecedented levels.

She explained that rising sea levels are increasing risks for about 900 million people living in low-lying coastal areas.

Ms Saulo noted that millions faced dangerous heat in 2026, leading to tens of thousands of extra deaths in Europe alone. Countries like India, Pakistan, and many parts of Asia and North America also faced severe heatwaves.

She mentioned devastating floods in parts of South America and Africa, droughts across Asia, the Pacific, and Central America, and major disasters in China and Nepal.

Despite these challenges, she said progress is being made in improving early warning systems.

She reported that the number of countries with multi-hazard early warning systems rose from 56 in 2015 to 136 in 2025.

Ms Saulo urged COP31 participants to prioritize consistent investments in climate data systems and early warning infrastructure.

"We cannot afford to fly blind," she said, calling for urgent actions and funding to tackle the growing climate threat.

Alan Dangour, director of climate and health at Wellcome, said the latest WMO climate report shows the serious threat from rising greenhouse gases, record temperatures, melting ice, and rising sea levels.

He explained that people around the world are feeling the impacts of climate change, but health issues are not getting enough attention in international climate talks.

"At Wellcome, we focus on people, on human health. And we’re working day and night to bring the health and wellbeing of people into rooms like this and the big negotiating rooms so that the impact of climate change on people finally takes its place at the climate change table," he said.

Mr Dangour mentioned findings from the Lancet Countdown annual report, which Wellcome funds, estimating that air pollution from fossil fuels and extreme heat cause over three million deaths each year.

He noted that extreme drought affected nearly 52 percent of the world’s land for at least one month in 2025, the second-highest level on record.

According to him, drought and changing groundwater conditions worsen food insecurity and sanitation problems, which have significant impacts on public health.

But he said there are several proven ways to tackle the health burden of climate change. These include clean energy, electrification, heat early warning systems, and broader adaptation measures, which could save lives and lower healthcare costs.

On the coalition's funding efforts, Mr Dangour said Wellcome has partnered with over 35 philanthropic organizations to create the Climate & Health Funders Coalition at COP30 in Belém, with an initial commitment of $300 million.

He announced that the coalition awarded over $225 million in its first year to support initiatives tackling extreme heat, air pollution, climate-sensitive diseases, and data systems.

The coalition also secured an additional $150 million from new and existing funders, bringing total funds raised to over $375 million.

Mr Dangour called on governments and businesses to enhance their responses to health risks linked to climate change, especially for vulnerable groups like children, pregnant women, outdoor workers, and the elderly.

He also emphasized the need for policies to protect pregnant women and newborns from extreme heat.

At the Pre-COP31 meeting in Fiji, he said Wellcome and its partners started a global call to action for better health guidelines, information, plans, and data to safeguard pregnant women from extreme heat.

He urged governments to focus on human health in climate actions, arguing that the success of climate talks should be measured not just by emissions cuts but also by lives saved and improved health outcomes.