In celebration of Earth Day, April 22, a day to support environmental protection of the planet, Health and Global Policy Institute (HGPI) is pleased to officially announce that it has joined the Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH) as a partner. 

ATACH was established based on the COP26 Health Programme, which was launched at the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2021. The program places human health at the forefront of climate change measures and calls on participating countries to commit to building “climate resilient health systems” and “sustainable low carbon health systems.” ATACH was established to translate these commitments into action, with the World Health Organization (WHO) as the Secretariat of ATACH.

As of April 2024, over 80 countries and areas have made ATACH commitments at the Minister of Health level, and ATACH has more than 30 participating partners, including ministries of health in countries that have made commitments. These partners can participate in the following five working groups;

• Financing Working Group (FIN-WG)
• Climate Resilient Health Systems Working Group (CRHS-WG)
• Low Carbon Sustainable Health Systems Working Group (LCSHS-WG)
• Supply Chain Working Group (SC-WG)
• Climate Action and Nutrition Working Group (I-CAN-WG)

HGPI will be participating in CRHS-WG, LCSHS-WG and SC-WG.

On January 27, 2024, at the 154th World Health Organization (WHO) Executive Board in Geneva, the Japanese government delegation expressed formal interest in ATACH. A formal commitment and participation in the partnership by the Japanese government are expected, and HGPI will provide as much support as possible to promote understanding among domestic stakeholders.

■About Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH):

ATACH was established at the request of member countries with WHO as its secretariat to share opinions and information; to reinforce technical and political cooperation; and to encourage making climate change a global priority. Its functions include monitoring, financing, and knowledge sharing, as well as coordinating access to technical assistance for participating governments and organizations.