Potential Impacts On Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Health And Well-Being
Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people are at risk of facing the negative effects of climate change as they mainly live in the remote areas of Australia. This paper aims to evaluate the effect of changes in climate on the health and well-being of the Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people in Australia. Climate change poses different severe threats to the culture, identities, and quality of life as the maximum of the ATSI people have a close relationship between the culture and environment (Vecchio, Dickson & Zhang, 2022). Extreme weather events can drive different issues related to access to food, healthcare and lack of basic resources that may cause the bad health of Aboriginal people. For this reason, there is a need to identify the issues that these Aboriginal people can face due to climate change.
Australia consists of more than 250 nations, and drastic climate changes can affect them, mostly Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people (ATSI). These indigenous people had free access to water and food within the traditional lands. After colonization, they are already facing disparities across the health and socio-economic perspectives (Cheer et al., 2020). These disparities in accessing health services have already suffered by kidney diseases, diabetes and heart diseases. However, adverse level physical health impacts of change in climate can include heat-related illness, vector-borne diseases, respiratory disorders, and food and waterborne diseases, including kidney and heart diseases (Vecchio, Dickson & Zhang, 2022). These diseases may directly impact the death rate, worsening health and injuries from excessive floods, bushfires, heat, and rising sea levels (Cunsolo & Ellis, 2018). Climate changes may differ, such as increasing temperature, lower temperature, heavy rainfall, storm, floods and fires. Some indirect cascading negative effects for the community result from the altered systems of natural quality of air, security of food, water security, and vector-borne diseases. Other intangible impacts have been found, such as losing of connection, and it affects the culture, emotional well-being and social well-being, which are more difficult to quantify and define (Vecchio, Dickson & Zhang, 2022).
Changes in climate can exacerbate the difficulties that are already faced by the people, including the economic and political marginalization, loss of resources and land, violations of human rights, unemployment and discrimination. The indigenous people face extreme temperature fluctuations that cause high electricity costs and are unable to buy air conditioners or heaters. It causes poor health (Delany-Crowe et al., 2019). These people live in regional and remote areas where heavy rain restriction has been increased on the come and go of communities. In this situation, the cost of supply of medication and specialist care is increased. Even transporting basic services and goods could not be possible. Increased storms, wind, and rain bring dust, increasing coughing, asthma, sneezing, and other health issues.
Heatwaves or hot weather can impact the productivity of workforce and exacerbate the existing fatal disease. Extreme heat raise affects cognitive-motor function. For this reason, the admission of Aboriginal people to the emergency department is increased, and Aboriginal children face respiratory illness (health.wa.gov.au 2022). The ATSI communities have experienced sea level rise where they have lost their traditional homelands. In fact, they have found salt inundation of the supplies of freshwater, the collapse of the mangroves forest systems and erosion of coastal races. Due to rising sea levels, they also have to migrate from their existing location. It increases the risks of environment for health, inadequate drinking water and lack of food security. For example, in Black Summer, Aboriginal people have been affected in NSW and Victoria (Lowitja.org.au, 2022). They have to face the damage to crops, and they are also facing issues related to water security risks from the ash situation, losing of biodiversity, contamination and damage to the destruction of the cultural sites. Prolonged drought has affected the mental health of Aboriginal communities. It also triggered unemployment and worries about money (Vecchio, Dickson & Zhang, 2022). The sense of losing triggered by observing the land sick affects the ability of responsibilities of cultural of the Aboriginal communities. They have been exposed to pollution of air from the geogenic dust because of dry climate, geology, and exposure to erosion of wind (Lowitja.org.au, 2022). It is associated with eye irritation and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Cyclones and floods can affect the rural or remote Aboriginal communities.
Issues That Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islanders Facing
Climate changes can impact the health and well-being of the ATSI people directly and indirectly. The community could not access the schools and health services. Extreme bushfires, smoke, air pollution and weather can increase respiratory and heart issues (Molloy et al., 2018). Aboriginal communities in Darwin are perceived to have a greater type of resilience than the non-indigenous people after the occurrence of cyclones. They also have no evacuation plans for cyclones and could not get access to emergency services after cyclones (Redman-MacLaren et al., 2017). Not only these issues, but Aboriginal people also face issues related to food security, water security and infectious diseases. It also affects the housing and community infrastructure and causes the intangible loss of emotional and social well-being. It has an impact on the health service provisions.
The government has adapted to climate change and declared a budget for the National Climate change Adaptation Programme in 2004 (Sinay & Carter, 2020). The government needs to reform the policies. For example, the national water policy could not address the traditional rights of ATSI people. However, the national water initiative aims to address water management and ensure a balanced distribution for achieving environmental and economic values (Molloy et al., 2018). The Aboriginal Land Rights Act is not adequate to maintain the safety of the Aboriginal people in the extreme climate changes. National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organization (NACCHO) has recommended a new policy in order to collect funding for mitigating the challenges of climate change. They have proposed town planning and development of the standards of local and state governments. In this recommendation, they have roped to increase the funding of ACCH to expand and reach the environmental health services to the remote areas (health.wa.gov.au, 2022). This policy recommends the collaboration of local, state and federal governments. In this policy, the staff knowledge and competence are evaluated randomly. There is a need to establish a fund program to support healthy living environments in urban, remote areas (Lowitja.org.au, 2022). There is a need to promote and update the National Indigenous Housing Guide for constructing, designing and maintaining the housing of ATSI peoples (Vecchio, Dickson & Zhang, 2022). However, the Australian government needs the implication of Beat the Heat, a national health strategy for coordinating the preparation of extreme heat, recovery measures, and response across the jurisdictions. Sustainable healthcare models need to be implicated in making the healthcare system. Empower First Peoples is another policy that can ensure the funding process and support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in climate change. It can be used in the policymaking procedure and implementation of it. The MJA Lancet Countdown on climate change and health policy need to implicate Australians (mja.com.au, 2022).
Conclusion
It can be concluded that the ATSI community faces a greater level of negative effects due to climate change. The government needs to focus on this community as they are Australia’s most vulnerable and poor community. An adequate amount of funding is needed for giving the emergency services and evacuation plan to the ATSI communities. There is a need to implicate more policies for resisting the adverse effects of climate change on ATSI communities. The national policies and legislation related to ATSI human rights need to change. The Australian government and population need to make strategies and initiatives to mitigate climate change-related issues. However, Aboriginal people have started to respond to climate changes effectively and are focusing on the strategies that help them reduce health issues.
References
Cheer, K., Watkin Lui, F., Shibasaki, S., Harvey, A., Grainger, D., & Tsey, K. (2020). The case for a Torres Strait Islander?driven, long?term research agenda for environment, health and well-being. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 44, 177-179. https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/63399/1/63399.pdf
Cunsolo, A., & Ellis, N. R. (2018). Ecological grief as a mental health response to climate change-related loss. Nature Climate Change, 8(4), 275-281. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0092-2
Delany-Crowe, T., Marinova, D., Fisher, M., McGreevy, M., & Baum, F. (2019). Australian policies on water management and climate change: are they supporting the sustainable development goals and improved health and well-being?. Globalization and health, 15(1), 1-15. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12992-019-0509-3
health.wa.gov.au (2022). Mitigating climate change to optimize Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health. Retrieved on 21 April 2022, from https://ww2.health.wa.gov.au/~/Media/Files/Corporate/General%20documents/Climate%20health%20wa%20inquiry/Public%20submissions/Organisations/Nationalaboriginalcommunitycontrolledhealthorganisation.Pdf
Lowitja.org.au. (2022). Climate Change and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health. Lowitja.org.au. Retrieved 21 April 2022, from https://www.lowitja.org.au/content/Image/Lowitja_ClimateChangeHealth_1021_D10.p
mja.com.au. (2022). The MJA–Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: Australian policy inaction threatens lives. Retrieved 21 April 2022, from: https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2018/209/11/mja-lancet-countdown-health-and-climate-change-australian-policy-inaction
Molloy, L., Lakeman, R., Walker, K., & Lees, D. (2018). Lip service: Public mental health services and the care of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. International journal of mental health nursing, 27(3), 1118-1126. https://doi.org/10.1111/inm.12424
Redman-MacLaren, M. L., Klieve, H., Mccalman, J., Russo, S., Rutherford, K., Wenitong, M., & Bainbridge, R. G. (2017, March). Measuring resilience and risk factors for the psychosocial well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander boarding school students: Pilot baseline study results. In Frontiers in Education (Vol. 2, p. 5). Frontiers. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2017.00005
Sinay, L., & Carter, R. W. (2020). Climate change adaptation options for coastal communities and local governments. Climate, 8(1), 7. https://doi.org/10.3390/cli8010007
Vecchio, E. A., Dickson, M., & Zhang, Y. (2022). Indigenous mental health and climate change: A systematic literature review. The Journal of Climate Change and Health, 100121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joclim.2022.100121
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