Living evidence map of the global climate and health literature.
10 affiliations
- 1Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Potsdam, Germany.
- 2Institute of General Practice, Medical Faculty of the Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
- 3EPPI Centre, UCL Social Research Institute, University College London, London, UK.
- 4The Center for Rapid Evidence Synthesis (ACRES), Regional East African Policy Initiative, Uganda Node, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda.
- 5African Synthesis Centre for Climate Change, Environment and Development (ASCEND), Climate Risk Lab, African Climate & Development Initiative (ACDI), University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
- 6Cochrane, London, UK.
- 7Effective Basic Services (eBASE), Bamenda, Cameroon.
- 8Alliance for Living Evidence (Alive), Melbourne, Australia.
- 9Centre on Climate Change & Planetary Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
- 10Future Evidence Foundation, Melbourne, Australia.
Abstract
Objectives
This is a protocol for a Cochrane review (flexible). The objectives are as follows: The objectives of this living evidence map are to: systematically map the breadth, scope, and characteristics of the global literature on the relationship of climate change, climate variability, weather, climate-forcing agents, and fossil fuels with human health and well-being; enable ongoing, up-to-date access to the evolving evidence base through a living approach (encompassing content currency and adjustment of methods); enable identification of clusters of well-researched areas and evidence gaps; enable flexible, accelerated identification, visualization, selection, analysis, and export of records according to the needs of a diverse group of interest holders via an interactive interface and filtering via a dedicated taxonomy; enable the continuous monitoring of a specific topic of interest; and evaluate the rigor, legitimacy, and utility of an AI-supported living evidence mapping approach. Specifically, we envision the map to enable: researchers to identify, collate, and select existing evidence and diverse study designs, explore clusters and gaps, and produce evidence syntheses in a more efficient way; policymakers and international and intergovernmental organizations (such as the World Health Organization or the Sustainable Development Goals Synthesis Coalition) to understand the scope, scale, and distribution of the evidence; research funding bodies to take a more evidence-based approach to funding decisions and identify and fund priority topics, where evidence is most needed and duplication of efforts is avoided; science assessment bodies such as the IPCC or the Lancet Countdown on Climate Change and Health to obtain a comprehensive overview of the research landscape and obtain easy access to relevant lines of evidence for their assessment; health professionals and health systems decision-makers to monitor emerging evidence and evidence syntheses in specific areas that can inform clinical and public health practice and guidelines; and patients and communities directly affected by climate change to gain an overview of the literature relevant to the health risks they face and support the development of evidence-based preparedness and resilience strategies.
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BibTeX
@article{metzendorf2026living,
title = {{Living evidence map of the global climate and health literature.}},
author = {Maria-Inti Metzendorf and Max Callaghan and Ailbhe Finnerty Mutlu and Ishita Gopal and Kaitlyn Hair and Ismael Kawooya and Pastan Lusiba and Andres Mena Mora and Promise M Nduku and Anna Noel-Storr and Mbah P Okwen and Ignacio Pita Vaca and Maria Pontes and Tim Repke and Pauline Scheelbeek and Lena Schmidt and Nadia Soliman and Britta Tendal Jeppesen and James Thomas and Alang Ernest Wung and Jan Minx and supported by the Cochrane Planetary Health Thematic Group},
journal = {The Cochrane database of systematic reviews},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1002/14651858.cd016408},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42960860},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Living evidence map of the global climate and health literature.
AU - Maria-Inti Metzendorf
AU - Max Callaghan
AU - Ailbhe Finnerty Mutlu
AU - Ishita Gopal
AU - Kaitlyn Hair
AU - Ismael Kawooya
AU - Pastan Lusiba
AU - Andres Mena Mora
AU - Promise M Nduku
AU - Anna Noel-Storr
AU - Mbah P Okwen
AU - Ignacio Pita Vaca
AU - Maria Pontes
AU - Tim Repke
AU - Pauline Scheelbeek
AU - Lena Schmidt
AU - Nadia Soliman
AU - Britta Tendal Jeppesen
AU - James Thomas
AU - Alang Ernest Wung
AU - Jan Minx
AU - supported by the Cochrane Planetary Health Thematic Group
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - The Cochrane database of systematic reviews
DO - 10.1002/14651858.cd016408
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42960860
AB - Objectives This is a protocol for a Cochrane review (flexible). The objectives are as follows: The objectives of this living evidence map are to: systematically map the breadth, scope, and characteristics of the global literature on the relationship of climate change, climate variability, weather, climate-forcing agents, and fossil fuels with human health and well-being; enable ongoing, up-to-date access to the evolving evidence base through a living approach (encompassing content currency and adjustment of methods); enable identification of clusters of well-researched areas and evidence gaps; enable flexible, accelerated identification, visualization, selection, analysis, and export of records according to the needs of a diverse group of interest holders via an interactive interface and filtering via a dedicated taxonomy; enable the continuous monitoring of a specific topic of interest; and evaluate the rigor, legitimacy, and utility of an AI-supported living evidence mapping approach. Specifically, we envision the map to enable: researchers to identify, collate, and select existing evidence and diverse study designs, explore clusters and gaps, and produce evidence syntheses in a more efficient way; policymakers and international and intergovernmental organizations (such as the World Health Organization or the Sustainable Development Goals Synthesis Coalition) to understand the scope, scale, and distribution of the evidence; research funding bodies to take a more evidence-based approach to funding decisions and identify and fund priority topics, where evidence is most needed and duplication of efforts is avoided; science assessment bodies such as the IPCC or the Lancet Countdown on Climate Change and Health to obtain a comprehensive overview of the research landscape and obtain easy access to relevant lines of evidence for their assessment; health professionals and health systems decision-makers to monitor emerging evidence and evidence syntheses in specific areas that can inform clinical and public health practice and guidelines; and patients and communities directly affected by climate change to gain an overview of the literature relevant to the health risks they face and support the development of evidence-based preparedness and resilience strategies.
SN - 1469-493X
ER -