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The Australian Government is investing almost $11 million to build Australian research capacity in climate change and related health impacts under the National Health and Medical Research Council’s (NHMRC) 2024 Targeted Call for Research (TCR) into climate-related health impacts and effective interventions to improve health outcomes.
A TCR is a one-time request for grant applications to address a specific health issue where there is significant research knowledge gap or unmet need. TCRs are designed to stimulate research or build research capacity in a specific area of health and medical science to the benefit of Australians.
This comes following the release of Australia’s National Health and Climate Strategy at the 28th United Nations Climate Conference (COP28) in Dubai in 2023. The strategy outlines priorities for the next 5 years to address the health and wellbeing impacts of climate change.
Ten research teams will work to improve the understanding of current and future impacts of climate change on the health and wellbeing of Australians and on the demand of our health system. Proposed research projects will identify key areas of vulnerability and effective interventions to improve health outcomes, reduce health inequities and increase our national resilience to climate-related health and economic threats.
Projects receiving funding include:
Platform for Research and Interventions in youth Mental health and the Environment (PRIME)
REFRESH: Resilience enhancement for workers’ fatigue, recovery & safety in the heat
The impact of climate on vector-borne zoonoses in Australia: changing transmission pathways and increased spill-over risks
