For the poor and vulnerable, the health impacts of climate change are already here, says physician Cheryl Holder. Unseasonably hot temperatures, disease-carrying mosquitoes and climate gentrification threaten those with existing health conditions, while wealthier people move to higher ground. In an impassioned talk, Holder proposes impactful ways clinicians can protect their patients from climate-related health challenges -- and calls on doctors, politicians and others to build a care system that incorporates economic and social justice.

Cheryl Holder: The link between climate change, health and poverty

The link between climate change, health and poverty

Heat illnesses, exacerbated heart and lung diseases, and emerging allergies reveal how climate change preys on the vulnerable.

Climate gentrification disrupts communities, pushing the vulnerable out of their homes for safer, higher ground developments.

Physicians are urged to mobilize, using their respected voices to influence policy, treating climate change as a health emergency.