How do we protect ourselves, our families and our communities as heat, flooding, drought and other climate-related health risks become more severe?

At Extinction Rebellion’s Love & Rage 2026, Dr Lynne Jones OBE and Dr Asmamaw Sisay Yigeremu explore the major threats to health in Europe, including the UK, arising from the climate and nature emergency — and what we can do to prepare.

Both are doctors and independent consultants, primarily engaged in public health education with parents and infants living in adverse circumstances, working with local partners in East Africa and Central America. Their work increasingly includes helping communities understand and cope with the health impacts of the climate and nature crises.

Both are active members of Health for XR and their local West Cornwall XR group when in the UK. Lynne is also the author of Sorry for the Inconvenience but This Is an Emergency: The Nonviolent Struggle for Our Planet’s Future.

Drawing on their international public-health work, they share lessons relevant to current and future health threats here in the UK.

Lynne begins with the physical and mental health impacts of extreme heat, including the particular risks faced by babies, older people, pregnant women and people with existing physical or mental health conditions. She discusses practical ways to prepare for heatwaves, recognise dangerous heat illness, identify cool spaces and support vulnerable people in the community.

The session then looks at flooding and drought as public-health issues: preparing for floods, protecting food and water, avoiding contamination, recovering safely afterwards and understanding the longer-term physical and mental health consequences of sudden-onset disasters.

Dr Asmamaw Sisay Yigeremu explores how changing conditions can affect infectious-disease risks, including mosquito- and tick-borne illnesses and diseases associated with contaminated water. He discusses practical prevention, from reducing small areas of stagnant water to protecting drinking water and food after flooding.

The speakers also examine indoor and outdoor air pollution, including smoke from wildfires and wood burning, and how pollution can interact with heat and existing health problems.

Throughout the session, the emphasis is not only on understanding the risks but on practical adaptation: preparing households, identifying vulnerable people, sharing knowledge and building community resilience. Lynne argues that adapting to present-day threats and preventing further climate impacts should go together.

Topics include:
• Extreme heat and heat illness
• Mental and physical health during heatwaves
• Flood preparation and recovery
• Drought and water security
• Sudden-onset disasters
• Water contamination and infectious disease
• Mosquito- and tick-borne disease
• Indoor and outdoor air pollution
• Wildfire smoke
• Protecting vulnerable people
• Household and community resilience

This session reflects the speakers’ public-health experience and guidance shared during the event. It is not individual medical advice.

Extinction Rebellion UK describes itself as a UK community of concerned climate-conscious citizens who Rebel for all Life, using non-violent direct action (NVDA). Its three stated demands are:

Tell The Truth | Act Now | Decide Together

Find Out More: https://extinctionrebellion.uk/

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Film by: Zoe Broughton Instagram: camerazoe and Vlad Morozov https://voice-media.co.uk