Dr Sarah Whitmee, PhD, Prof Andy Haines, FMedSci, Prof Chris Beyrer, MD, Frederick Boltz, PhD, Prof Anthony G Capon, PhD, Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias, PhD, Alex Ezeh, PhD, Howard Frumkin, MD, Prof Peng Gong, PhD, Peter Head, BSc, Richard Horton, FMedSci, Prof Georgina M Mace, DPhil, Robert Marten, MPH, Samuel S Myers, MD, Sania Nishtar, PhD, Steven A Osofsky, DVM, Prof Subhrendu K Pattanayak, PhD, Montira J Pongsiri, PhD, Cristina Romanelli, MSc, Agnes Soucat, PhD, Jeanette Vega, MD, Derek Yach, MBChB
Far-reaching changes to the structure and function of the Earth’s natural systems represent a growing threat to human health. And yet, global health has mainly improved as these changes have gathered pace. What is the explanation? As a Commission, we are deeply concerned that the explanation is straightforward and sobering: we have been mortgaging the health of future generations to realise economic and development gains in the present. By unsustainably exploiting nature’s resources, human civilisation has flourished but now risks substantial health effects from the degradation of nature’s life support systems in the future.
