USGCRP agencies and interagency groups played a leading role in the development of a Belmont Forum international Collaborative Research Action (CRA) launched in April 2019, focused on issues at the intersection of climate, environment, and human health. 

 

In addition to an international scoping workshop organized by the Interagency Crosscutting Group on Climate Change and Human Health (CCHHG) and International Activities Interagency Working Group (IAIWG) in April 2018, USGCRP member agencies (including NIH, NOAA, and NSF) participated in a year-long, international drafting process for a final research call. USGCRP member agencies (including NIH, NOAA, NSF and USDA) also partnered on the CRA by providing funding or in-kind contributions to support eligible U.S. researchers. Following the Belmont Forum model, U.S. resources would directly support only U.S. researchers as part of this action. However, this opportunity allows U.S. agencies to leverage the contributions of other international partners and promote scientific collaboration.

 

The CRA will support international research teams of natural, health, and social scientists and stakeholders, working together to understand how climate variability and change influence human health and well-being, and to support effective responses. The initiative aims to generate scientific evidence and tools to support policy and decision-making that can enhance health system resilience to climate impacts and provide significant public health benefits.