Health and Environment

MSc Global Health Management · 2018–present

A tree half green on lush grass, half bare on cracked dry earth

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module you will be able to:

  • Develop a structured understanding of how climate and environmental change affect population health, health inequalities and healthcare systems.
  • Critically assess the strength and limitations of evidence linking environmental exposures and climate risks to health outcomes.
  • Apply economic and public health decision frameworks, including valuation methods and Health Impact Assessment, to climate- and environment-related health questions.
  • Engage critically with policy and governance debates on prevention, mitigation, adaptation and sustainability in healthcare systems.

Module content

Climate and environmental hazards
The different sources and types of pollutants.
Climate and health vulnerability assessment
The latest evidence on the impact of the environment on health, the possible biases of observational studies, and how to address them to quantify the impact of the environment on individuals’ health.
Outdoor and indoor pollution, and the built environment
How previous, current and future built environments affect individuals’ health.
The cost of pollution in monetary terms
Monetising the health costs and benefits associated with pollution.
Environmental policy analysis and health benefits
A brief history of the main environmental policies and their health benefits, then the assessment of health impacts in policy evaluations. We compare cost-of-illness studies (COI), cost analysis (CA), cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA), cost-utility analysis (CUA) and cost-benefit analysis (CBA), and how they differ from economic evaluation in a pure health economics context.
Health co-benefits of climate mitigation strategies
The concept of co-benefits and the effectiveness of mitigation strategies, including measurement issues and the sustainability of specific mitigation approaches.
Adaptation and sustainability
As the environment changes, adaptation is necessary to live better in it. We review the evidence on human adaptation and its measurement challenges, then define sustainability and the key conditions that support it. This session brings together the issues raised earlier to support a holistic approach that benefits human health.
Conclusion
A conceptual overview of climate change and health impact projections.

Learning and teaching approach

Each session includes a lecture and class discussion. Some sessions also include structured exercises or group activities to support analytical reasoning. There are 10 sessions, each typically two hours long.

Student evaluations

Student evaluation reports (PDF, opens in a new tab):

The module was cancelled in 2025/26, so no feedback is available for that year.

For enrolled students

Slides, problem sets and readings are in the student area 🔒.