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Online attendees please feel free to join the session remotely .

This event, held as part of , will present global evidence and explore local, scalable solutions for climate and health, with a particular focus on two key topics: healthy, sustainable cities, and action on short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) or ‘super pollutants’. 

The first session, hosted by LSHTM, (UKHACC), and (UCL) will focus on health as a driver for sustainable cities, highlighting opportunities for and examples of city leadership on climate and health in the UK and globally. 

The second session, hosted by the (CCAC) and LSHTM, will dive into the latest science, tools, and strategies for tackling super pollutants, and delivering immediate benefits for climate, clean air, and public health.

Further information on each session, speakers, and the link to register below.

Participants are welcome to join for one or both of the sessions, and for networking at the end of each session. Refreshments and lunch will be provided. You are welcome to stay for as long as you would like and the ticket types are there to help ensure we cater in a sustainable way.

Programme

9:30-11:00: Session 1: Health as the driver for sustainable cities

Cities present unique opportunities for advancing climate and health action. Though cities are currently major contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, they also offer solutions to climate and health challenges and many are already leading the way towards a healthier net-zero future.

This session will explore evidence on the health benefits of climate action across sectors, with a particular focus on accelerating the net-zero transition in cities in the UK and globally. The session will showcase examples of city leadership and case studies of urban climate solutions that also bring benefits to health, with emphasis on the importance of monitoring, evaluation and reporting to understand impact, inform further action and ensure accountability. Speakers will explore ways forward to drive transformative change and a just transition, and participants will be invited to share their views on creating healthier, more sustainable urban futures for all. 

09:30: Professor Liam Smeeth, Director, LSHTM: Welcome & Opening remarks

Liam Smeeth is the Director of LSHTM and a Professor of Clinical Epidemiology. He is also a practicing doctor in NHS general practice. During his career, he has been supported by fellowships from MRC, NIHR and Wellcome. He was previously a Trustee of the British Heart Foundation and a non-executive director of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. He is a member of the strategic oversight committee for UK Biobank and an elected Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences. He co-chairs the BMJ Commission on the Future of the NHS.

09:50: Panel discussion: Health as the driver for sustainable cities

, Wellcome Trust (Chair)

Rachel Huxley is Head of Mitigation for Climate and Health at the Wellcome Trust, leading the research programme to generate evidence of the health co-benefits of mitigation. Prior to Wellcome, Rachel was Director of Knowledge and Research at C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, where she led a priority programme of research on the multiple benefits of urban climate action, launched of C40’s flagship , and led research for C40’s .

Dr Sarah Whitmee, LSHTM

Sarah Whitmee is an Assistant Professor at LSHTM’s Centre on Climate Change and Planetary Health and co-PI of the Wellcome Trust-funded Pathfinder Initiative, a research project and global partnership that aims to accelerate a just transition to a healthy net-zero future. Sarah was lead author of the Lancet Pathfinder Commission Report on the health benefits of climate action. Before joining LSHTM she was the Executive Secretary to the Rockefeller Economic Council on Planetary Health at Oxford Martin School and part of the Secretariat of The Rockefeller Lancet Planetary Health Commission.  

, UK Health Alliance on Climate Change

Richard Smith is Chair of the UK Health Alliance on Climate Change, which brings together health professionals to advocate for just responses to the climate and ecological crisis, promote the health benefits that flow from those responses, and empower members and health professionals to make changes in their professional and personal lives to respond to the crisis. Richard is also Chair of the Point of Care Foundation, Chair of Patients Know Best, and co-Chair of the Lancet Commission on the Value of Death. He was previously Editor of the BMJ and chief executive of the BMJ Publishing Group. 

, CDP

Tom Garrood is UK Cities Manager at CDP, an independent environmental disclosure system for companies, capital markets, cities, states and regions. Before joining CDP, Tom was Zero Carbon Transition Manager for Oxford City Council. Tom is an experienced climate partnership and policy specialist with over a decade of leading impactful climate action across the public, private, and higher education sectors in the UK and internationally. He is recognised for pioneering innovative public-private collaborations and for his ability to bring together diverse stakeholders to deliver systemic change. Tom’s expertise goes beyond carbon reduction - he focuses on building inclusive partnerships that unite communities, businesses, and institutions around a shared vision for a more sustainable future. 

, UCL

Giorgos Petrou is a Senior Research Fellow at the UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering (IEDE), Scientific Manager for PAICE (Policy and Implementation for Climate & Health Equity – funded by the Wellcome Trust), and Co-Investigator on ARCADE (Accelerating Resilience and Climate Adaptation of Domestic Environments for vulnerable populations – funded by UKRI). Over the last eight years, he has led and contributed to internationally significant research in the Built Environment field, with a focus on the adaptation of homes against increasing temperatures, and the health co-benefits of climate change mitigation action.

, C40 Cities

Honorine van den Broek d'Obrenan is a Research Senior Manager at C40 Cities, exploring climate action's social and economic impact. She has over the past years supported more than 100 cities in assessing the health and climate impact of urban projects, from school retrofits in Copenhagen, closing coal power plants in South Africa, defining Quezon City's green building code, and vehicle electrification in Latin American cities. Honorine has both an architecture and sustainable urban engineering background.

10:35: Q&A discussion

10:55: Rachel Huxley: Closing remarks

11:00-11:30: Networking break with refreshments

To be held in room G90.

11:30-13:00: Session 2: The imperative for action on super pollutants

Last year was confirmed as the first year in which global average temperatures exceeded 1.5 °C, and air pollution impact on human health was revised upwards, with 8 million people dying early from air pollution every year, making it the second largest risk factor for ill health. These crises are deeply intertwined – and so are their solutions.

Despite these worrying trends, 2025 represents a unique opportunity to begin to reverse them through action on super pollutants. Scientific analysis conducted by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) shows that super pollutants - like methane, black carbon, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), tropospheric ozone, and nitrous oxide - contribute half of today’s climate change, but actions to reduce these pollutants are dramatically underrepresented in national climate plans. Right now, governments are updating their climate strategies and plans before COP30 in Brazil, increasing action on super pollutants is therefore one of the key underutilised responses to climate change that can boost climate change mitigation ambition.

CCAC analysis has shown that actions to reduce super pollutants not only benefit climate change but have a broad range of other benefits. Millions of early deaths from air pollution can be avoided every year from super pollutant-focussed action, other health risks can be reduced at the same time, and multiple other economic, food security and development benefits can be achieved. By acting quickly to reduce super pollutants, countries can accelerate climate progress, prevent millions of premature deaths, and unlock far-reaching economic, food security, and development benefits. The science is clear, and the tools exist – what’s needed now is political will and implementation at scale.

Join us to hear from and discuss with leading scientists and policymakers from around the world why fast action on super pollutants is critical – and how we can get it done.

11:30: , Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI): Welcome & Opening remarks

Professor Johan Kuylenstierna leads the air pollution and climate change group at the SEI York Centre, based at the University of York, UK. His research is concerned with various aspects of air pollution at scales ranging from regional to global, including impacts on crops, forests and human health, and regional cooperation to reduce emissions. He has been heavily engaged in developing UNEP and CCAC assessments, and supported national mitigation planning. Johan is a Professor at the SEI York Centre. Prior roles include SEI York Centre Director (1997-2012), Policy Director (2013-19) and he joined SEI in 1989. He is a member of the SAP of the CCAC, and chairs the Science Group supporting the UN International Day of Clean Air for blue skies.

11:35: , Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development: The global imperative for action on super pollutants

Dr Gabrielle Dreyfus works at the interface of science, policy and advocacy as the Chief Scientist at the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development (IGSD). She is also an adjunct lecturer at Georgetown University. Dr Dreyfus has authored many scientific and technical publications and is a member of the CCAC's SAP, and the Montreal Protocol’s Technology and Economic Assessment Panel Refrigeration Technical Options Committee. She was chair of the U.S. National Academies’ committee on Atmospheric Methane Removal: Development of a Research Agenda and served on the committee on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Information for Decision Making. She was a member of the technical review committee of the Global Cooling Prize, and served as Chief Scientific Advisor to the Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program (now Clean Cooling Collaborative) at the ClimateWorks Foundation. Previously, Dr Dreyfus served as the Deputy Director of the US Department of Energy’s Office of International Climate and Clean Energy, and held fellowships in the US Senate, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and US Department of Energy. Dr Dreyfus received a doctorate in Geosciences from Princeton University and Sorbonne Université, and a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard University.

11:45: Sir Andy Haines, LSHTM: Health and Climate Benefits of Action

Sir Andy Haines is Professor of Environmental Change and Public Health, °®ÍþÄÌapp of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). Andy is co-Chair of the Lancet Pathfinder Commission and broader Wellcome Trust-funded Pathfinder Initiative, a research project and global collaboration focusing on the health benefits of climate action. He is Chief Scientific Advisor of the newly launched WHO Pan-European Commission on climate and health. He has chaired and been a member of many international committees, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for the second, third and fifth assessment exercises. Andy was Director of LSHTM from 2001 to 2010 and until recently co-director of the WHO Collaborating Centre on Climate Change, Sustainable Development and Health at LSHTM. He was awarded the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement in 2022.

11:55: Ava Bahrami, CCAC: Communicating for Action

works as the Communications Officer at the Climate and Clean Air Coalition Secretariat at the UN Environment Programme, where she leads the coordination of communications strategy and partnership engagement on air pollution and climate. Her background in sustainable development and both applied and sociolinguistics informs her expertise in strategic communications, focusing on the role of identity, social attitudes, and behavioural drivers. She has worked with ESCAP, UNDP, UN-Habitat, and the UN Information Centre.

12:05: Panel discussion: Scientific and policy tools for action

Professor Johan C.I. Kuylenstierna, SEI (Chair)

, University of Eastern Finland Law School

Dr Yulia Yamineva is Associate Professor in Climate Law and Policy at the Centre for Climate, Energy and Environmental Law of the University of Eastern Finland (UEF), and SAP member of the CCAC. Yamineva specializes in climate law and governance, with extensive publications on short-lived climate pollutants, linkages with air pollution, and the science-policy interface. She is currently the Principal Investigator of the project consortium with the Finnish Meteorological Institute ClimAirPathways, which aims to develop integrated approaches to addressing climate change and air pollution in the EU and China. At UEF Law School, she co-directs the Master’s Programme in Environmental Policy and Law and directs the UEF-UNEP Course on Multilateral Environmental Agreements. Previously, she was based at the UNFCCC Secretariat, where she supported intergovernmental negotiations on climate finance. Yamineva holds a PhD and MPhil from the University of Cambridge. 

, UNIDO

Dr Kenza Khomsi is an expert in climatology, air quality, and environmental health. Formerly Head of the Climate Change and Air Quality Departments at Morocco's General Directorate of Meteorology, she pioneered integrated urban air quality services. Dr Khomsi holds PhDs in Environmental Health and Climatology, an Engineering degree in Meteorology, and a Master’s in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics. Internationally, she serves on the WHO’s Global Air Pollution Technical Advisory Group and WMO expert teams, and co-leads the MENA GeoHealth Hub funded by the NIH. Her research and leadership focus on climate adaptation, air quality, and linking health with environmental policy, fostering global collaboration for sustainable solutions. 

12:25: Q&A discussion

12:55: Closing remarks

13:00-14:00: Networking with lunch

To be held in room G90.

Event notices

• Please note that the recording link will be listed on this page when available.
• Responses from the online Q&A are listed below. 

Online Q&A responses 

The following questions were submitted online during the panel discussion on health as the driver for sustainable cities.

• What is the impact of climate change on NCDs, specifically for cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease?
  • Links between climate change and NCDs, including cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease have been documented. For example,  provides an overview of the impacts of climate change on cardiovascular health, resulting from direct exposures such as shifts in ambient temperature, air pollution, forest fires, desert storms and extreme weather events.  led by UCL and the °®ÍþÄÌapp of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) found that patients with chronic kidney disease living in the hottest countries experienced an additional  each year compared to those living in temperate climates.
• London being a global centre of fashion, art and entertainment of the world, how can it help to promote sustainability through reduction of carbon footprint without compromising its vibrancy, tradition and legacy?
  • was a great example of how London can promote sustainability, building on its innovation, creativity and leadership. Forum for the Future a London based leading international sustainability organisation, produced this recent report on .
• Should the cities have a mandate how they are contributing to the NDC submitted by the countries?
  • Cities offer huge potential to contribute towards national efforts on climate, the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships is a commitment by national government to work with sub-national governments on climate, in particular cities and NDCs, see here for more details .
• Since civil engineers, architects, and urban planners are the ones who actually build cities, should the health implications of their projects be somehow formally incorporated into their professional accreditation and practices? Climate adaptation and mitigation are increasingly incorporated in civil engineering thinking, but not health so much (not explicitly at least). They seem like an important community who are often not included as part of these conversations.
  • It’s really important to consider the impact of urban form and building design on climate and health. We (the Wellcome Trust) have funded research into this important topic (e.g. the  project) but are not aware of accreditation that incorporates both climate and health, though we would support it.
  • Some accreditations consider health outcomes directly (the WELL building standard is fully focused on health and buildings), or partly (Leed, BREEAM have some elements considering the acoustics, natural light, air pollution, water quality). Some buildings codes that are currently being passed by cities (eg. Quezon City, Kuala Lumpur) also integrate mandatory recommendations on water and air quality, as well as the integration of nature.  
• Should more noise be made about the economic cost to society of the health effects of climate change? The economy is what matters most to politicians and much of society.
  • Great question! This is one of the recommendations of the Lancet Pathfinder Commission (see recommendation 3 pg 19 in the ), and see an example of impact in the  showing a potential US$835 billion income loss from the impact of heat on workers.  from the Climate and Clean Air Coalition gives some good economic arguments for action.
• Please if possible give two ways that the world and global south can deliver more results in clean air and financing innovative projects.
  • The Climate and Clean Air Coalition have a great website showcasing actions that can support both climate, clean air and health, .
• How do you think we as scientists can work more effectively with creatives/people in the arts to engage the public around climate action?
  • Here is one example from Wellcome on how we have worked with the arts to engage on environmental and health issues - .
  • Other initiatives such as the  and s are helping to bring creative content for NGOs.
  • The Children, Cities and Climate Action Lab led by LSHTM, in partnership with the have run a series of art competitions to engage young people with themes relating to cities, climate change and health.
  • The , funded by the Nairobi City County government and World Bank and implemented by UN-Habitat, reinvented a street in Nairobi using creative methods and activities. A wide range of actors including the Implementing Creative Methodological Innovations for Inclusive Sustainable Transport Planning (i-CMiiST)project led by the Stockholm Environment Institute, the Architectural Association of Kenya, The Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, and members of the public were involved in co-designing the developments to create a healthier, more sustainable urban environment.