The Role of the Arts at the Intersection of Climate Change and Public Health

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Published on December 11, 2025

DI Faculty Fellow Ian Garrett has just published an article in Art & Health on the role of the arts at the intersection of climate change and public health ahead of forthcoming WHO Policy Brief.

This international survey study investigates how practitioners working across the arts, public health, and climate action understand the role of the arts in addressing the health impacts of climate change. Respondents from diverse regions identified four major contributions of the arts: bringing people together to build community resilience, raising awareness and communicating climate-health information, enabling collective problem-solving, and providing space for emotional processing, hope, and healing. The study also identifies structural barriers including limited funding, lack of recognition, and insufficient cross-sector collaboration that hinder the scale and impact of arts-based climate-health interventions. The findings offer actionable insights for policymakers, artists, climate scientists, and health professionals seeking to integrate creative approaches into climate-health adaptation and mitigation strategies.

This work directly advances the Institute’s commitments to planetary health, community resilience, and interdisciplinary approaches to climate-related health challenges. It provides evidence for the value of integrating cultural and creative practices into public-health–oriented climate action and highlights opportunities for cross-sector collaboration that can inform global health policy and climate-health communication.

Find the full paper here: https://doi.org/10.1080/17533015.2025.2584236

Munson, S., Wright, T., Minkoff, M., Shaheed, A., Brinza, T., Moula, Z., & Garrett, Ian. (2025). The role of the arts at the intersection of climate change and public Health: findings from an international survey. Arts & Health, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/17533015.2025.2584236

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