Climate-related health threats are mounting faster than the world can respond, with extreme heat claiming hundreds of thousands of lives each year and inflicting trillions of dollars in economic damage, according to the 10th annual Lancet Countdown report, produced by University College London researchers together with the World Health Organization, infohub.kz reports.
The study involved 146 scientists from more than 100 institutions across 30 countries. They tracked 54 indicators of climate impacts on human health ahead of the COP31 climate conference and called for the situation to be recognized as a global health emergency.
Extreme heat poses the greatest danger. Between 2016 and 2023, extreme temperatures killed an average of 540,800 people a year, with 68% of those deaths attributed to human-caused climate change. In 2023, heat-related deaths reached a record 710,000, surpassing mortality from malaria and HIV.
In 2025, heat-driven losses in labor productivity cost the global economy $1.07 trillion, hitting agriculture and construction hardest in Africa and Southeast Asia. More than half of the world's land area suffered drought in 2025.
The growth of clean energy is saving lives by reducing air pollution, but fossil fuels still supply more than 80% of energy consumption. Project executive director Marina Romanello and board chair Helen Clark stressed that hydrocarbon subsidies are slowing adaptation. The scientists urge governments to put human health at the center of climate policy.