Unit 1
Session duration: 6 academic hours, including:
- Lecture: 2 h,
- Workshop: 3 h,
- Q&A: 1h
Learning objectives:
By the end of this unit, students will be able to:
- Identify the primary greenhouse gases (GHGs) and their sources, both human and natural.
- Explain the mechanisms by which GHGs contribute to climate change and global warming.
- Analyze how climate change impacts the global burden of disease (GBD), including heat-related mortality, vector-borne diseases, malnutrition, and respiratory conditions.
- Use open-access data (WHO, GBD/IHME, OurWorldInData) to visualize GHG-related health trends.
- Critically assess climate-health interlinkages and propose mitigation or adaptation strategies.
Session format: Blended (In-class + online pre-study)
Digital innovation focus: Students learn to use GBD/WHO dashboards and interpret real-world datasets
Inclusivity & sustainability focus
- Includes climate justice aspects (e.g., vulnerable populations in LMICs),
- Promotes digital literacy for sustainability reporting,
- Encourages students to connect global concepts to their local/national context.
Discussion questions:
1. Which greenhouse gases have the strongest impact on climate change, and why?
2. What are the health effects associated with increasing concentrations of GHGs?
3. How does air pollution differ from greenhouse gas emissions in terms of health outcomes?
4. How does the global burden of disease (GBD) reflect the impact of climate change?
5. What populations are most vulnerable to GHG-related health risks?
The instructor:
- Presents key concepts (GHGs, CO₂ equivalents, IPCC basics, climate-health pathways).
- Demonstrates use of the GBD visualization tool and CO₂ data dashboard.
- Guides interactive group work and facilitates discussions
Students:
- Participate in an interactive quiz (via Kahoot or Moodle) on GHG types and sources.
- Work in groups to analyze a GBD dataset by country/region (provided in Excel or the WHO dashboard).
- Reflect on climate-health vulnerability in a short diary entry using the INSERT technique.
- Contribute to a collaborative Padlet or Jamboard on climate-sensitive diseases.
Assignments
Before the session: 1) Read assigned literature (see below); 2) Watch introductory video “Climate Change and Health” (WHO, 2023, 10 min: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0yjb3HuyQw)
During the session: 1) Take part in group GBD case analysis (1 page summary + visualization, https://vizhub.healthdata.org/gbd-foresight/); 2) Engage in data interpretation of trends from IHME or OurWorldInData.
After the session: 1) Submit diary #1: “How do GHGs affect health in my country or region?” (2 pages max, with 1 citation)
Recommended reading & resources:
- WHO. (2023). Climate change and health: Key facts. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-and-health;
- IPCC AR6 Summary for Policymakers – Health Chapter (https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_WGII_SummaryForPolicymakers.pdf),
- Prüss-Üstün, A., Corvalán, C. (2006). Preventing disease through healthy environments (https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/204585/9789241565196_eng.pdf),
- Max Roser & Hannah Ritchie. CO₂ and Greenhouse Gas Emissions. OurWorldInData.org (https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-greenhouse-gas-emissions),
- IHME GBD Compare Tool: https://vizhub.healthdata.org/gbd-compare/,
- Copernicus Climate Change Service (https://climate.copernicus.eu/).