Climate and Health Research on Wellcome Open Research
| 16 December, 2025 | Jack Nash |
Climate change is an escalating health crisis that affects everyone; however, it disproportionately affects vulnerable communities. Health research can help us understand the wider impacts of the climate crisis and how these are distributed across society. Evidence shows that heat-related deaths and illnesses are on the increase, and higher temperatures and extreme weather lead to the spread of infection. In short, climate change impacts and disrupts every area of society and our health.
This is one of the reasons why the Wellcome Trust is funding key research to put health at the heart of climate action, shaping policies and identifying practical solutions to protect people’s health from climate change.
Read on to learn about research published on Wellcome Open Research that furthers our understanding of the interaction between climate and health.
An Analysis of the Health Effects of Physical Activity due to Active Travel Policies in Rennes, France
Physical inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for premature death worldwide. Increasing physical activity can not only reduce these health risks but also provide health co-benefits such as better sleep quality, fall injury prevention, and cognitive enhancements. Environmental co-benefits of increased physical activity levels, especially through greater active travel methods, include significant reductions in carbon emissions and improved air quality.
Active travel, or transportation by walking, cycling, or other active methods, can be an integral aspect of keeping a community active and healthy. Transportation is linked to urban populations’ health through pathways of air pollution, noise, green space, injury, and physical activity. Active travel is consistently associated with reductions in all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, and other non-communicable diseases, even after adjusting for demographic factors, recreational physical activity, and other comorbidities. Active travel is also associated with better mental health and reduced stress.
The following Research Article, published as part of the CUSSH Collection, aims to consider active travel-related health outcomes in an urban environment using the Health-Oriented Transportation (HOT) statistical model. The HOT model considers scenarios in which an urban population achieves physical activity through transportation, i.e. active travel. The model is a transparent and easily accessible tool that allows users to assess the current and potential health benefits of active travel using data from a one-day travel survey. These open and transparent methods allow researchers and policymakers to be informed about potential health outcomes of various transportation policies, even when data is limited.
Read the full Research Article here.
Scalable, open-access and multidisciplinary data integration pipeline for climate-sensitive diseases
Climate-sensitive infectious diseases are an increasing public health concern as weather and climate changes create conditions that can influence how diseases spread. Recent estimates indicate that more than half of known human pathogenic diseases might worsen due to climate change, highlighting the urgent need to better understand how environmental changes affect disease dynamics. While climate and weather factors such as temperature, precipitation, and humidity are well-known drivers of vector-borne diseases and respiratory viruses, non-climatic factors like demographic shifts, socio-economic conditions, human behavior, and land-use changes are also crucial. Comprehending how these various factors interact requires an integrated approach that combines multiple scientific fields.
Despite the need for interdisciplinary approaches, existing tools for integrating spatio-temporal data relevant to climate-sensitive diseases remain limited. To address these limitations, the authors of the following Software Tool Article developed the DART (Dengue Advanced Readiness Tools) pipeline, an open-access, locally deployable system designed to streamline the integration of diverse spatio-temporal epidemiological, socio-economic, and climatic datasets.
Read the full Software Tool Article here.
The PAICE project: Integrating health and health equity into UK climate change policy
Addressing the closely linked climate and health challenges requires essential changes that surpass any country’s current efforts. The UK has been at the forefront of climate target-setting, being the first to establish a legally binding greenhouse gas reduction target and set a Net Zero goal. Yet, despite these significant milestones, its implementation efforts fall short. Achieving healthy, sustainable, and climate-resilient growth demands transformative, large-scale solutions that prioritize health and health equity while leveraging global transdisciplinary research and experience.
The potential health impacts of climate action are gaining increasing attention. Evidence-based methods are essential to guide policy development, implementation, and progress monitoring. However, these processes are challenging, especially in understanding how interventions affect health equity across different populations.
Poorly designed policies can worsen existing health inequities or miss opportunities to improve them. Therefore, there is value in monitoring frameworks to evaluate and track progress. In the following Open Letter, the authors outline the PAICE project. It aims to explore the connections between climate change action, health, and health equity in the UK, focusing on translating evidence into policy and practice. It will involve co-developing a program theory, analyzing policy opportunities, and building an integrated model to assess the impact of these policies on health and emissions. If successful, PAICE will enhance the capability to monitor government climate targets and improve relevant policy approaches.
Read the full Open Letter here.
Are you researching climate and health, and receiving funding from the Wellcome Trust for your research? Submit your work to Wellcome Open Research today with no author-facing fees.