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José Luis Castro Participates in High-Level Global Health Discussions During the 79th World Health Assembly

During the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, José Luis Castro, WHO Special Envoy for Chronic Respiratory Diseases and Founding Director of the 17�Թ��� Center for Global Health, participated in multiple international discussions focused on respiratory health, climate change, health equity, and prevention-oriented health systems.

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At the panel discussion hosted by Foreign Policy, titled “Improving Policy Through Evidence: The Environment-Health Connection,” global leaders and policy experts examined how environmental conditions are increasingly shaping public health outcomes worldwide. The session featured Sandrine Bouttier-Stref, Global Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Sanofi; Dr. Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum, Climate Change and Health Unit Lead at the World Health Organization; José Luis Castro; and Ambassador Dr. Burak Akçapar, Permanent Representative of Türkiye to the UN Office in Geneva. The discussion was moderated by Allison Carlson, Executive Vice President at Foreign Policy.

The conversation highlighted the growing need for evidence-based policies that recognize the direct connection between environmental conditions and long-term health outcomes, particularly for chronic respiratory diseases. During the session, José Luis Castro emphasized the importance of moving beyond siloed approaches to health policy and addressing the environmental and social determinants shaping health globally. Discussions also focused on the impact of rising temperatures, worsening air pollution, wildfires, and environmental exposures on asthma, COPD, and other chronic respiratory diseases, especially among vulnerable populations.

Devex Discussion on Lung Health, Climate, and Health Equity

The event, sponsored by Sanofi and Regeneron, featured José Luis Castro alongside the Minister of Health of Guyana and other international leaders. The discussion focused on the urgent need to integrate chronic respiratory diseases into broader climate, development, and public health agendas.

Throughout the session, panelists highlighted how rising temperatures, worsening air pollution, wildfire exposure, and household energy pollution are intensifying the burden of asthma, COPD, and other chronic respiratory diseases worldwide, particularly among vulnerable populations.

José Luis Castro emphasized that chronic respiratory diseases can no longer be treated as isolated health conditions, underscoring the need for prevention-focused systems and stronger cross-sector collaboration between health, environmental, and policy sectors.

Earlier Diagnosis and Integrated Respiratory Care

At another panel session at the 79th WHA, José Luis Castro joined the Minister of Health of Malaysia and other global health leaders to address one of the major challenges in respiratory health today: delayed diagnosis and fragmented systems of care.

The conversation focused on how millions of people living with asthma, COPD, and other chronic respiratory diseases continue to be diagnosed far too late, often only after significant and irreversible lung damage has already occurred.

Across all the discussions José Luis Castro participated in during the 79th World Health Assembly, the message remained consistent: chronic respiratory diseases can no longer be treated as isolated health conditions. Addressing the growing burden of asthma, COPD, and other respiratory diseases will require integrated, prevention-oriented approaches that connect health systems with climate policy, clean air initiatives, primary healthcare, and health equity efforts. The discussions collectively emphasized that earlier diagnosis, cleaner environments, and stronger cross-sector collaboration must become central priorities in improving respiratory health outcomes globally.