New research centre tackles climate change health risks in the tropics

Image: (L-R) Assoc Prof Sanjay Chotirmall, Vice Dean (Research), NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Deputy director of CCEH; Prof Frank Kelly, School of Public Health - Faculty of Medicine, Deputy Director, MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London; Prof Ernst Kuipers, NTU Vice President (Research); Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment and Senior Minister of State for Transport; Assoc Prof Steve Yim, Director of CCEH; Prof Joseph Sung, NTU Senior Vice President (Health & Life Sciences); Prof Simon Redfern, Dean, NTU College of Science; and Prof Emma Hill, Chair, NTU Asian School of the Environment, Interim Director of Earth Observatory of Singapore, at the launch event on Tuesday (15 Apr). 

To address the growing health threats posed by climate change, NTU Singapore is launching a new interdisciplinary research centre focused on climate change and environmental health in the tropics.

The Centre for Climate Change and Environmental Health (CCEH) will focus on the health impact of climate change under three key pillars: air quality, extreme heat, and water supply and quality — issues that are becoming increasingly urgent in Southeast Asia due to rising global temperatures and environmental changes.

CCEH, a university-level research centre, brings together expertise from across NTU’s research ecosystem, including the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine), the Asian School of the Environment (ASE), Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS), the Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering (SCELSE), and the Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute (NEWRI). It will also collaborate with both local and international partners to develop evidence-based policies and real-world solutions.

The centre was officially launched on Tuesday (15 Apr) by Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment.