608 PS 1: Climate change, migration, and health: navigating complexity from theory to practice

Abstract PS 1: Climate Change and Health – ‘Examining the impact of climate change on migration patterns and health outcomes’ - Patricia Schwerdtle and Jiming Zhu, Auditorium A & B (Rectory), September 3, 2025, 11:00 - 12:00 Climate change, migration, and health are deeply interconnected, yet often treated in isolation or in dyads across policy and practice. This opening presentation provides a structured synthesis of these domains to clarify the conceptual landscape, assess the latest evidence, and identify practical pathways for action. Drawing on high-level global syntheses - including the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report, the forthcoming WHO Global Report, and the upcoming Lancet Commission on Climate Change, Migration and Health - this presentation first explores how climate change acts as a risk multiplier, driving both mobility and health inequities through complex exposure pathways. Migration is framed as both an outcome of climate stress and a potential form of adaptation, while health is examined across the entire migration cycle, from pre-departure through to return. The second part of the talk distills emerging evidence on how these interactions are playing out globally, highlighting areas of deep uncertainty and vulnerability. Finally, grounded examples from Chad and South Africa illustrate how climate-resilient, low-carbon, and migrant-inclusive health systems can be built using practical, locally informed tools such as vulnerability and capacity assessments (VCAs). These cases demonstrate the power of system-level thinking and participatory implementation in translating theory and evidence into meaningful change.