TGLF Podcast: Health workers re-engineering care to survive the climate crisis

A pregnant woman in Ngandajika, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, cannot cross the flooded river to reach the maternity hospital. The women in her village set up a solidarity fund to pay for a longer overland route, weeks before her due date. This episode unpacks how 24,610 health workers across more than 70 countries are doing this kind of work every day, and what global health funding still gets wrong about it. ## What this episode covers - Why climate change is not bringing a new sci-fi virus, but is making malaria, cholera, malnutrition, and maternal mortality worse and harder to reach. - The story of the second twin who was saved when local quarter heads dug gutters in the middle of a storm so cars could get through, told by Guer Rafaela Agua, a midwife in Cameroon. - Why young people charging a hundred-franc coin to carry patients across floodwaters is real implementation science, not a coping anecdote. - How a women’s solidarity fund, a community-built dispensary, and a WhatsApp triage group become the real infrastructure when the road washes away. - The hidden subsidy: nurses and midwives paying out of pocket for motorbikes, boats, and phone credit to keep the system running, with no reimbursement. - The 14 recommendations from the report, for frontline workers, district planners, and global funders. ## The report The episode is based on the Teach to Reach 11 report from The Geneva Learning Foundation, published 4 June 2026. - Full report: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18246203 - Citation: The Geneva Learning Foundation. Teach to Reach 11: Local action to mitigate the impact of the climate crisis on health. Listening and Learning report 20. The Geneva Learning Foundation, 2026. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18246203 ## Companion articles - New insights report: health workers are leading community responses to climate change impacts on health: https://redasadki.me/2026/05/26/new-insights-report-health-workers-are-leading-community-responses-to-climate-change-impacts-on-health/ - Climate change and health: 8 take-aways from community-based responses: https://redasadki.me/2026/05/26/climate-change-and-health-8-take-aways-from-community-based-responses/ - Climate change and health: 14 recommendations for health workers, national planners, and global partners: https://redasadki.me/2026/05/26/climate-change-and-health-14-recommendations-for-health-workers-national-planners-and-global-partners/ ## Join the launch event Thursday 4 June 2026. - English Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85731864236 - English YouTube live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBKQy2HrZQM - French Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86517960688 - French YouTube live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtExm0--Vho ## Take the free course Climate change is harming your community’s health: what you can do now. Free, in English and French, open to anyone working in health. Built with leaders from the REACH network of more than 4,000 locally-led organisations. - Course: https://go.learning.foundation/tglf/c/32182 ## About The Geneva Learning Foundation The Geneva Learning Foundation is a member of the Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education. We work with more than 80,000 health and humanitarian workers in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. ## Voices cited in this episode - Victor Odia, nurse, Democratic Republic of the Congo. - Guer Rafaela Agua, midwife, Cameroon. - Mugang Brigitte, nurse, Cameroon. - Megan Anna Jeklin, Burkina Faso. - Dr. Kasumberry, Mali. - Dr. Mahesh Bhat, Uttarakhand, India. And dozens more, drawn from the 100 detailed accounts published in the annex of the report. #climateandhealth #healthworkers #globalhealth #teachtoreach #genevalearningfoundation