Scientists Are Counting The Diseases Climate Change Causes

InnovationScienceScientists Are Counting The Diseases Climate Change CausesByJohn Drake,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. John Drake is a professor at the University of Georgia. Follow AuthorMay 15, 2026, 12:15pm EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.LUSAKA, ZAMBIA - FEBRUARY 24: A man rests outside his house surrounded by contaminated water on February 24, 2024 in Lusaka, Zambia. Cholera, a waterborne bacterial disease, has unleashed a perilous wave across southern Africa, with active outbreaks currently afflicting five countries in southern and central Africa. Over the past two years, the epidemic has left a devastating trail, infecting more than 220,000 individuals, and claiming the lives of over 4,000 people in 19 countries across the continent. Public health experts attribute the widespread devastation to a confluence of factors, including increasingly intense storms driven by climate change, a shortage of vaccines, and inadequate water and sewer infrastructure. Among the affected nations, Zambia stands as one of the hardest hit, grappling with its deadliest cholera outbreak on record. Since October, the country has witnessed over 700 fatalities and more than 18,500 infections, although cases and deaths have shown signs of slowing since their peak in January. (Photo by Luke Dray/Getty Images)Getty ImagesThe American Academy of Microbiology, an elected body of the field’s most distinguished scientists, has released a report with a pointed question at its center: we know climate change is spreading infectious disease, but how well have we actually measured the damage? The answer, according to a colloquium of leading epidemiologists, microbiologists and climate scientists, is not well enough. I was a participant in that colloquium, and even among specialists the sparseness of the evidence was sobering.Warmer temperatures expand the ra...