The Freedom From Religion Foundation is celebrating World Health Day today, an annual event to bring awareness about health concerns, by advocating for science, not faith-based, policies.
For this year’s theme, “Our planet, our health,” the World Health Organization provides a list of valuable resources and articles about the negative impact of pollution on the planet and our individual and collective well-being, as well as how climate change is a crisis for the Earth and its inhabitants.
FFRF believes in a world where science and reason guide our policies. Indeed, climate change is a state/church issue, as FFRF has noted: “Systems that deny facts and reality must not be used to dictate public policy.”
When we look at the facts and reality, we can see that there are many opportunities for intersectional improvement. For example, research has shown that climate change disproportionately impacts women. A recent study found that 80 percent of people displaced by climate change are women. Furthermore, women across the globe are more likely to experience poverty, hence undermining their resilience when it comes to confronting the effects of global warming. In the face of environmental disasters, women face increased risks as their local community networks erode.
The World Health Organization points out, “While the Covid-19 pandemic showed us the healing power of science, it also highlighted the inequities in our world.”
FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor says, “The only afterlife that should concern us is leaving our descendants and our planet a secure and pleasant future. Unfortunately, that pleasant and secure future is jeopardized by unrestrained growth, overpopulation and the resulting human-made climate change.”
Help us honor World Health Day by speaking up for science and reason-based policy.
