The Climate Equity Policy Center is part of a team that has been selected by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention to undertake an equity-oriented revision of CDC’s climate and health framework.

The revision will address the CDC’s existing framework for assisting public health departments in working on climate change, known as Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE). The update will focus on the following:

• integrating equity and racial justice more deeply into the framework, including the identification of populations at greatest risk and inclusion of community voices in adaptation and mitigation planning and implementation

• adding mitigation activities that slow the pace of climate change to the framework’s current adaptation focus

• providing context and tools to strengthen the implementation and usability of the framework.

The team is headed up by the Prevention Research Center at UMass Chan Medical School; other partners include Health Resources in Action, Center for Climate Change and Health, American Public Health Association, and the University of New Hampshire. The updates will support public health departments and their partners across the country in addressing climate change and equity. Work is currently underway with an expert panel, landscape analysis, and key informant interviews.

Project outcomes will be the revised framework and a suite of technical guidance and capacity building materials and tools for public health practitioners to plan and implement climate and health adaptation and mitigation interventions. The revised framework and materials should be available in late 2024 or 2025. Stay tuned for updates and more information on this page.