WHO recognizes climate change as the biggest health threat facing humanity, and acknowledges that it has the potential to undermine decades of progress in global health. WHO’s primary role is to direct and coordinate international health through six core functions, one of which is “articulating ethical and evidence-based policy options”. In furtherance of this mandate, WHO’s Health Ethics and Governance Unit has established a new and dedicated workstream on climate change, health and ethics.

Through this work, WHO is committed to working with Member States, United Nations and other international agencies, and the wider global health and research community to deliver a range of supporting tools and materials to help navigate ethical issues across the health (and health research) and climate change fields, and to embed them effectively in relevant policies. The Technical Advisory Group on Embedding Ethics in Health and Climate Change Policy (TAG-Ethics & Climate Health) was established in December 2023 to advise and support this initiative.

In its capacity as an advisory body to WHO, the TAG-Ethics & Climate Health shall have the following functions:

1. to provide advice on the identification of stakeholders in the fields of health and climate change, including appropriate engagement strategies, to ensure an inclusive engagement process, and to help in considerations of the rights and responsibilities of different stakeholders in ethical decision-making;

2. to advise the project team (WHO staff and consultants) on the development of evidence-gathering methodologies, with particular reference to a series of case studies designed to identify the practical ethical challenges arising for health and research stakeholders responding to climate change;

3. to contribute with expert inputs into drafts of supporting tools and frameworks and/or guidance developed to support the successful inclusion of ethical considerations in policy and decision-making in climate change and health; and

4. to review and make recommendations to the project team on the final tools, frameworks and guidance to be developed, including on any proposed dissemination strategies.

Following a call for experts in August 2023, WHO has appointed 13 members of the TAG-Ethics & Climate Health, who serve in their personal capacities to represent the broad range of disciplines relevant to ethics and climate change and health.

In the selection of the TAG members, consideration was given to attaining an adequate distribution of technical expertise, geographical representation and gender balance.

Members of the TAG-Ethics & Climate Health have been appointed to serve for a period of two years.

Their appointment may be terminated at any time by WHO if WHO’s interest so requires, or as otherwise specified in letters of appointment. Where a member’s appointment is terminated, WHO may decide to appoint a replacement member.