Climate change and global health: Developing a social vaccine to motivate transformation

Abstract

Global civilization is imperilled by the combination of climate change, ancient and emerging rivalries at varying scales, and the existence of weapons of mass destruction and their threatened use. There is excessive hope, approaching a quasi-religious faith, that technologies, many of them either not yet invented, or unaffordable, will rescue us. Workers in public health, on the whole, have badly underestimated the scope and urgency of the emergency that humanity faces and, thus, the risks to global public health. Such workers, as a generalization, continue to do so. We apply and expand the 'social vaccine' metaphor as an instrument by which to appeal to readers, including within the health community, to help engage with this crisis and to help develop viable solutions.