High temperatures increase the chances of heat-related illnesses and deaths in most places around the world. In England alone, Public Health England estimate that over 2500 excess deaths occurred during heatwave periods in summer 2020, in addition to covid deaths. As a society, we are more aware than ever of the intersection of health and the environment and the importance of foresight.

In this presentation Dr Eunice Lo will provide an overview of historic heatwaves and their impacts on human mortality, and whether human-induced climate change increased the risk of heatwave deaths. Dr Lo will then discuss, based on what we know about the relationship between high temperatures and mortality outcomes, the current and potential future mortality impacts of extreme heat due to climate change. Dr Lo will take a global perspective to explore what meeting the global temperature targets set in the Paris Climate Agreement means in terms of extreme heat-related mortality in the future.

Dr Eunice Lo is a Research Associate in the School of Geographical Sciences and the Cabot Institute for the Environment. Her work centres around understanding the health impacts of extreme events associated with climate change, and how these changes impact human health.

The event will be held on Zoom and you can join here.