Pro VC: Research Seminar Series

When the music changes so does the dance: As the climate changes, infectious diseases are changing their rhythm, reach and range. Presented by Professor Helen

Infectious diseases cause millions of deaths each year, disproportionately affecting people in low- and middle-income countries and young children. An estimated 80% of human pathogens are environmentally mediated, involving vectors, water, food, environmental reservoirs and non-human animal hosts. Many of these transmission pathways are sensitive to changes in climate and ecosystems. Climate change acts as a threat multiplier, reshaping the ecological and social conditions in which infectious diseases emerge and spread.

Rising temperatures can expand vector ranges and transmission seasons, shifting the geography of diseases such as malaria, dengue and chikungunya. Floods can trigger cholera and other diarrhoeal outbreaks, while drought drives water insecurity, malnutrition and displacement. Climate and ecosystem disruption can alter wildlife habitats and human–animal contact, creating opportunities for zoonotic spillover. Extreme weather, conflict and humanitarian crises further amplify these risks through population displacement and disruption of fragile health systems.

Climate change is helping to redraw the global map of infectious disease. Understanding these changing patterns—and adapting our science, surveillance and health systems to anticipate and respond is now an urgent global health priority.

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