LR: Dr Bettina Borisch, CEO WFPHA, Dr Jeni Miller, Global Climate and Health Alliance and Dr Raman Bedi, President of WFPHA
Cape Town, 7 September 2026:- The World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA) today presented the Global Climate and Health Alliance (GCHA) with an award for “helping shape a healthier, more equitable and resilient world”, during the 18th World Congress on Public Health (WCPH) in Cape Town, South Africa.
The Global Climate and Health Alliance is one of seven organisations and public health leaders receiving awards from WFPHA; GCHA “receives the Climate and Health Action Award for its leadership in mobilizing the global health community around climate change as an urgent public health challenge”, says WFPHA.
According to the WFPHA, ”since 2011, GCHA has developed a global network of more than 200 health and development organizations, representing millions of health professionals and workers. Its work has helped place health at the center of international climate policy by connecting scientific evidence, professional advocacy, and global policy engagement.”
“Among [GCHA’s] contributions are efforts supporting the 2024 World Health Assembly Resolution on climate change and health and the subsequent WHO Global Action Plan. As co-chair of the WHO–Civil Society Working Group on Climate and Health, GCHA continues to advocate for health-centered climate policies and climate-resilient health systems.”
GCHA’s work highlights a growing reality for public health: climate action is health action, and climate justice is inseparable from health equity”, concludes WFPHA.
“The Global Climate and Health Alliance is delighted to receive this honour from the World Federation of Public Health Associations and offers our congratulations to the other awardees”, said Dr Jeni Miller, Executive Director of the Global Climate and Health Alliance. “In truth, there is no single individual or organisation working alone; in our case, the Global Climate and Health Alliance brings together more than 250 health professional and health civil society organisations and networks to take action to protect human health from climate change and the impacts of the extraction and burning of fossil fuels. We are proud to strive alongside many committed individuals and organisations, working to make the earth a safe and healthier place for everyone.”
“ Any impact that that the Global and Climate and Health Alliance has had is because of the many health organisations and professionals around the world who have recognised the threat climate change poses to health and who have come with us on this journey and have come together to have a joint voice to make an impact on the policies that matter”, said Miller, when accepting the award.
“I want to express how meaningful it is to accept this award from the World Federation of Public Health Associations. I joined the American Public Health Association when I started my career. I found a home there because in public health, people understand the social determinants of health, environmental determinants of health, and so understanding that climate change is a health crisis and is a health issue comes very naturally to the public health field”, said Miller.
ENDS
Contact:
Dave Walsh, Communications Advisor, Global Climate and Health Alliance, [email protected], +34 691 826 764 (Available from 0630 CET)
Martinique Jobin, Communications Manager, World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA), [email protected]
About GCHA
The Global Climate and Health Alliance is a consortium of more than 300 health professional and health civil society organisations and networks from around the world addressing climate change. We are united by a shared vision of an equitable, sustainable future, in which the health impacts of climate change are minimised, and the health co-benefits of climate change mitigation are maximised.
Find out more: https://climateandhealthalliance.org/who-we-are/about/
