Vol. 15 No. 1 (2023): Arch Pub Health
Public Health

Review of policies and actions on tackling global climate change - COP26 - is this the last chance?

Mihail Kocubovski
Institute of Public Health of the Republic of North Macedonia, Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia, Faculty of Medicine, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Skopjе, Republic of North Macedonia
Gordana Ristovska
Institute of Public Health of Republic of Macedonia, Medical Faculty, University Sts Ciril and Methodius, Skopje
Aleksandra Petrova
Institute of Public Health of the Republic of North Macedonia, Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia, Faculty of Medicine, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Skopjе, Republic of North Macedonia
Jansun Bukovetz
Institute of Public Health of the Republic of North Macedonia, Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia
Kristi Disho
Public Health Center Ohrid, Republic of North Macedonia
Tomislav Hadzi Tosev
Public Health Center Strumica, Republic of North Macedonia
Aleksandar Petreski
Center of Public Health Prilep, Republic of North Macedonia

Published 2023-03-10

Keywords

  • climate change,
  • policies,
  • actions

How to Cite

1.
Kocubovski M, Ristovska G, Petrova A, Bukovetz J, Disho K, Hadzi Tosev T, Petreski A. Review of policies and actions on tackling global climate change - COP26 - is this the last chance?. Arch Pub Health [Internet]. 2023 Mar. 10 [cited 2024 Mar. 29];15(1):5-15. Available from: https://id-press.eu/aph/article/view/6075

Abstract

The world is facing the visible and potential consequences of climate change. No place on the Earth is immune to these changes. Current policy applied worldwide anticipates global warming of about 2.7oC compared to pre-industrial level by the end of the century. By implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), warming will be kept to 2.4oC. If long-term commitment targets or net-zero targets are included, then warming would be kept to about 2.1oC above the pre-industrial levels. The warming projections dropped by 0.3oC after the made pledges and established targets by the USA and Peoples’ Republic of China. According to the “optimistic” scenario, if the 140 analysed countries reach the zero emission targets, then the average warming will be 1.8oC, or below 2oC. There is a significant gap between the pledges made by the governments and the total level of actions they have undertaken so far.With the new economic challenges, it is clear that we are at a crossroads. The impact of COVID-19 crisis will be crucial for the future of the climate policy. Climate changes will not wait. Their threat is over our heads and each and every day we face them. Every individual has a role to play in dealing with global climate change and we all can contribute to this threat if we all work together in a synchronous way. A greater political involvement is needed along with collective actions taken by all social actors. Over the last two years, the World Health Organization has advocated for greater inclusion of health authorities and services in Nationally determined contributions through activities to reduce the implications on health by climate change. 

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