Welcome Message
Welcome to the 2009 Summer Institute course on 'Climate Information for Public Health'. Many of you have made long journey in order to be here, and we are excited that you have done so and chosen to be a part of this course. You are now part of a dynamic group of students and professionals in both climate and health from around the world. We have prepared a dense, informative, skill-building program for you, that is led by leading researchers in climate and health issues.
As we know, Public Health is an effort organized by society to protect, promote and restore the health status of societies. It is the combination of science, skills and beliefs directed at the maintenance and improvement of health through collective social actions. In this context, climate researchers should be considered a part of the public health community. No success story in public health has ever resulted from the action of a single individual. More often, it has resulted from the commitments and alliances achieved through networking among individuals, disciplines and nations.
Now that the world's attention is focused on climate variability and climate change adaptation, it is essential, not only for public health communities, but also for planners in central government, to understand the role climate plays in driving disease burden and impacting economic growth. Public health emerges as the final common pathway for all impacts of climate variability and climate change on individuals as well as societies.
As a contribution to this process, The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI) in partnership with the Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) and the Mailman School of Public Health initiated this two-week course in 2008. Building on the response of our 2008 alumni, we believe this training course is a valuable platform for creating a global network of practitioners focused on policy and practice in public health and climate issues.
We hope and believe that this course will provide you many exciting opportunities to explore new knowledge, create and strengthen new partnerships and develop tools to use in both climate and public health so that you may integrate these two fields better to enhance your own institution's capacity and capability for action. We look forward to learning from you how best to build a dynamic 'community of practice' that will help shape the way climate information is developed and used for improving health outcomes now and in the future, especially in the least developed countries.
There is much to cover and do in the next two weeks. Over this time, we will cover a range of topics, so feel free to seek out and speak to any facilitators or support staff to further your understanding of any of these topics, both during this course and in the future. On behalf of the IRI, CIESIN, and the Mailman School of Public Health, welcome again to Lamont Campus and the Summer Institute. Now, let's get started!
The IRI is the premier global research and capacity building institution focused on the use of climate information in public health decision making. IRI is a collaborating center with WHO-PAHO on climate sensitive diseases and has active international partnerships concerning malaria, meningococcal meningitis, Rift Valley Fever and other diseases including an interest in dengue, diarrhoeal diseases and Kala-azar (leishmaniasis). The IRI and other members of Columbia University's Earth Institute (including Mailman School of Public Health, CIESIN and the Lamont campus) together combine extensive experience in environmental health, population mapping and modeling with remote sensing, climate prediction and the study of climate variability and change. Invited speakers will also contribute expert lectures and seminars.
The Summer Institute will expose participants to data, methods and tools for integrating climate change and climate variability into public health decision-making processes. It will include presentations, seminars, opportunities for participants to discuss integrated work with leaders in their respective fields, and to gain hands-on experience with analytic tools.
