About us
The Centre for Climate and Health Security provides scientific advice to partners at all levels ensuring climate change and extreme weather impacts on public health are included in system design. Our digital service is the go-to place for information on climate and health impacts, key risks and equity considerations. It provides summaries and tools while also signposting to relevant guidance and advice.
Our mission
To support local authority partners to navigate the complexities of climate change and health security.
To help mitigate the health impacts of climate change and protect communities.
What we do
The Centre for Climate and Health Security is responsible for:
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raising awareness of the public health impact of climate change
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contributing to surveillance and response
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developing evidence on the impacts of climate change policy on public health
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using evidence to inform climate change policies locally, nationally, and internationally
Our teams
CCHS is a division of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Science Group under the ‘Scientific Strategy and Development’ Directorate. It was formally launched in October 2022.
CCHS consists of five teams:
- Medical Entomology & Zoonosis Ecology (MEZE): conducts vector surveillance and assesses vector-borne disease risks.
- Climate Health and Assessment team (CHAT): increases the evidence base around the health impacts of climate change through research.
- Extreme Events and Health Protection (EEHP): responds to and promotes resilience to adverse weather events.
- Mobilisation team: ensures knowledge is accessibly disseminated to local government and other key partners.
- Deputy Director’s office: supports operational and strategic functions.
Head of the Centre
Professor Lea Berrang Ford is the Head of the UKHSA CCHS. She is also a Research Chair in Climate and Health at the Priestley International Centre for Climate, based at the University of Leeds, and an expert in how climate change affects health, how we can adapt to these effects, and the health implications of decarbonisation.
Professor Berrang Ford was a Lead Author on the 2022 IPCC 6th Assessment Report and co-authored the 2022 Lancet Countdown report on health and climate change. She led a large international project, working with over 125 scientists to study global progress on adapting to climate change. For over 10 years, she has led projects on climate and health, working with partners in Uganda, Peru, and the Canadian Arctic. She has a PhD in infectious disease epidemiology and expertise in climate science and policy. In 2020, Reuters listed her among the top climate scientists in the world.