Rising global temperatures pose a significant threat to communities, with escalating extreme heat and heatwaves endangering lives worldwide. With heat driving extreme events, chronic heat exposure already at dangerous levels in parts of the world and the intensity and frequency of heatwaves increasing globally, rising temperatures are becoming a critical threat to all of us, with cascading impacts. In July 2024, the UN Secretary-General issued a Call to Action on Extreme Heat, underscoring the need for a comprehensive global response to this ‘silent killer’.

This event, led by Wellcome and co-hosted with the Rockefeller Foundation and the Global Heat Health Information Network, aims to highlight extreme heat as a critical global health threat and advocate for the integration of scientific evidence on heat and health into policy-making. This event aims to drive climate action and preparedness in the face of geopolitical headwinds, emphasizing accessible, data-driven solutions that can safeguard communities and promote resilience.

It will be opened by Ko Barrett (WMO, Deputy Secretary General), alongside Charlotte Watts (Wellcome, Executive Director of Solutions), include contributions from the Ministries of Health of Bangladesh and Spain as well as feature global heat experts and community leaders including:

• Dr Sayedur Rahman – Honorable Special Assistant (State Minister), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Bangladesh
• Dr Pedro Gullón – Director of Public Health and Health Equity, Ministry of Health, Spain
• Reema Nanavaty, Director, Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)
• Petra Khoury, Director of Health and Care, International Federation Red Cross Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
• Abderrezak Bouchama, Chairman, Department of Experimental Medicine, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center
• Ousmane Ndiaye, Director-General, African Center of Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD)
• Jason Lee, Director Associate Professor, Heat Resilience & Performance Centre at the National University of Singapore & Chair, GHHIN Southeast Asia Hub
• Marc Gordon, UNDRR Senior Coordinator, Midterm Review of the Sendai Framework, former Coordinating Lead Author of the UN Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction and Head of Global Risk Analysis