‘Hybrid weapon of war’: Why climate disinformation could be a growing public health threat

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day, reviewed by our editorial team. Read the full piece on Euronews or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: Health and civil society organisations are urging 194 countries to recognise climate disinformation as a public health threat
• A report from the WHO Civil Society Working Group on Climate and Health warns that misleading narratives can undermine emergency responses, erode trust in health guidance and delay policies that protect people from pollution and climate risks

🔭 The context: Climate disinformation involves the intentional spread of false or misleading claims, while misinformation may be shared without deliberate intent
• Case studies include false rumours after the 2023 Maui wildfires that could deter survivors from seeking disaster assistance, and misleading narratives surrounding London's Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ)
• The report also identifies fossil-fuel greenwashing and conflicts of interest as factors that can allow disinformation to spread

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Climate disinformation can weaken public support for climate action and clean-air policies, while putting lives at risk during heatwaves, wildfires and floods
• Protecting reliable information is therefore important for both climate resilience and public health.

⏭️ What’s next: The report calls for governments to integrate responses to disinformation into climate and health preparedness, strengthen safeguards against conflicts of interest, and improve public communication during emergencies
• The European Commission’s #ClimateFactsMatter campaign encourages people to check sources, scrutinise claims attributed to experts and be wary of emotionally loaded language or supposed quick fixes

💬 One quote: “Climate disinformation is not only a problem of false rumours and mistruths; it is also a problem of power, incentives and accountability.” — Dr Jeni Miller, Executive Director of the Global Climate and Health Alliance and co-chair of the WHO Civil Society Working Group on Climate and Health

📈 One stat: 194 countries are being urged to make information integrity a core part of climate and health policy, preparedness and response

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