Planetary Health

Our Programmes
Planetary Health

Future-proofing health for all in the climate era

The SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute’s Planetary Health Programme advances the health of both people and the planet in Asia by building resilient and sustainable health systems, promoting health equity, and fostering education and collaboration.

Backed by Duke-NUS and SingHealth, we work at the nexus of health, climate, and sustainability — supporting evidence, innovation, and partnerships to help health systems thrive amid planetary challenges.

Our primary focus areas

Climate-resilient and sustainable health systems

We strengthen health systems across Asia to anticipate, adapt to, and recover from climate shocks.

Leading a WHO-commissioned Asia-Pacific Consortium on Climate-Resilient, Sustainable Health Systems under the WHO Asia-Pacific Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (48 markets, five-year collaboration from August 2025).
Analysing National Adaptation Plans through a health ethics lens, commissioned by WHO and co-implemented with the Heidelberg Institute of Global Health (124 countries, January to December 2025).
Collaborating across SingHealth Duke-NUS: Pathology, Nursing, Pharmacy, Allied Health, Occupational and Environmental Medicine, and the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC) to embed green healthcare practices (Six units as listed above, January 2025 – present).

Beyond these initiatives, we continue to support countries with climate-health planning, capacity building, and implementation research across the region.

Climate change & health equity

We explore how climate change deepens health inequities, focusing on vulnerable and frontline communities.

Connecting Climate Minds Eastern and Southeastern Asia Hub to advance and advocate for mental resilience against climate change. (17 markets, February 2024 - present).
Heat stress and kidney health studies among farmers in Sri Lanka and Cambodia in collaboration with regional universities. (representing roughly 0.02% of Sri Lanka’s estimated 1.6 million farmers and about 40% of Cambodia’s population.)
Research on climate-induced migration and chronic diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) across five hospitals in Medan, Indonesia and Philippines with Duke University and Imperial College London (engaging 1,000 young people in policy co-design).

Our broader work spans evidence generation, participatory research, and policy advocacy to address the intersection of climate, health, and equity.