Health Related: Climate Justice and Health in Arid Regions

Conveners: Anat Rosenthal (BGU), and  Shahar Livne, (BGU)

Arid regions are home to some of the world’s most vulnerable populations, including indigenous communities, subsistence farmers, pastoralists, and low-income urban dwellers who have historically endured systemic marginalization and resource deprivation. These communities often lack adequate healthcare infrastructure, economic resources, and political representation, creating pre-existing vulnerabilities that are intensified by climate change. The layering of climate impacts upon generations of structural inequities creates a compounding effect, where each new environmental stressor -whether extreme heat, drought, or water shortage and contamination – exacerbates existing health disparities and further compromises access to care.

Climate change’s disproportionate health impacts on individuals and communities highlight the urgent need for equitable approaches that protect the fundamental right to good health. The climate justice perspective recognizes that those who contribute least to climate change often suffer its most severe impacts, particularly with regard to health outcomes. This inequity demands responses that address not only the immediate effects of a changing climate but also a systemic approach that addresses health disparities.

This session aims to present multidisciplinary approaches to climate justice in health, integrating social, political, economic, environmental, and public health perspectives. We invite papers that address topics such as (but not limited to) health equity, communities and systems adaptation, policy interventions, access to care, and case studies on the intersection of climate justice, the right to health, and arid regions.