Bridgetown, Barbados, 26 February, 2021 (PAHO/WHO) – The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the University of the West Indies (UWI) will soon have a better understanding of what Caribbean people know about the links between climate change and their health.
The survey will be shared through a partnership with Caribbean mobile phone network, Digicel and targets adults, 18 years and older, across many Caribbean countries. Respondents will be asked to complete a short questionnaire which should take about ten (10) minutes. Participation is entirely voluntary, anonymous, and individual data will not be shared. The survey received ethical approval from ethics review boards of the UWI and PAHO/WHO. The data provided will be a valuable guide in the creation of an awareness and advocacy campaign and will strengthen climate and health systems in the Caribbean.
The survey is a critical tool to gain baseline information for the European Union (EU) funded 5-year project aimed at empowering Caribbean action for climate and health. It is being implemented by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and brings together project partners including CARICOM, the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) and the UWI. Other UN agencies and universities like St George’s University (SGU) will also participate.
The survey is entitled ‘Is there a link between climate change and your health?’ Anyone wishing to participate can click this link: https://trnd.ly/ClimateHealthTT
The project builds upon the success of the “One Health One Caribbean One Love” project led by the UWI St. Augustine Campus from 2014 to 2017. It also address the strategic lines of action identified by regional health and environment leaders of the Caribbean during the Third Global Conference on Health and Climate Change, held in St. George’s, Grenada, on 16-17 October 2018, reflected in the Caribbean Action Plan on Health and Climate Change (2019).
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) works with the countries of the Americas to improve the health and quality of life of its population. Founded in 1902, it is the world’s oldest international public health agency. It serves as the Regional Office of WHO for the Americas and is the specialized health agency of the Inter-American system.
The PAHO Subregional Program is responsible for providing subregional technical cooperation and to strengthen PAHO’s engagement with the Caribbean Subregional integration mechanisms, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and its various bodies and organs; and to build synergistic partnerships with the subregional institutions such as the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) and the University of the West Indies (UWI), among others. PAHO’s subregional technical cooperation specifically focuses on public health issues that would benefit from economies of scale and for which agreement on proposed collective responses and actions would produce a far greater impact rather than individual country responses. The Subregional Program also plays a role in coordinating among the different PAHO country offices
