Beat the Heat

Beat the Heat

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Initiative against extreme heat and related environmental health risks in workplaces and major events

 

Beat the Heat is a initiative under WHO’s Sport for Health programme, developed in collaboration with FIFA. It aims to protect the health and safety of workers, spectators, and communities by addressing rising risks from extreme heat, air pollution, and UV exposure at workplaces, sporting and other mass gatherings events.

Drawing on WHO’s expertise in climate, environment, and emergency preparedness—and in partnership with WMO and ILO—the initiative promotes evidence-based action and capacity building. It engages governments, businesses, workers’ groups, sports bodies, mass gathering organizers, and communities in high-risk areas.

Aligned with World Health Assembly resolution WHA77.12, the initiative supports health system adaptation to climate change and contributes to the implementation of WHO’s global plan of action on climate change and health, adopted by the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly.

 

Overarching objectives

  1. To use international guidelines and tools to protect workers and the public from extreme heat, air pollution, and harmful sun exposure. 
  2. To help workplaces and event organizers learn how to handle heat and air pollution better. 
  3. To make health systems, including services for workers and the environment, stronger to protect people in high-risk areas. 
  4. To create ways to talk to and work with communities to keep workers and event attendees safe from heat, air pollution, and harmful sun exposure. 
  5. To inform people about heat-related health risks and how to prevent them, and to push for strong rules and monitoring to keep everyone safe in the long run. 

 

Beat the Heat Pillars

Pillar 1: Workplaces

This initiative will leverage the implementation of standards to protect working people from heat stress, UV rays, and air pollution by creating and using protocols and tools to keep workers and the public safe from extreme heat and its risks. The effort will help workplaces better manage heat exposure and strengthen health systems to protect workers against environmental dangers in high-risk areas. By developing strategies for risk communication and engaging with communities, the initiative seeks to protect workers creating infrastructure and providing services for mass gatherings and sports events from exposure to extreme heat, air pollution and solar radiation and providing them with adequate water and sanitation and occupational health services. Additionally, it aims to raise awareness and advocate for strong policies, regulations, and monitoring systems for prevention of environmental health risks in workplaces through effective communication and partnerships.


Pillar 2: Mass gatherings and sports events

The Beat the Heat Initiative aims to protect attendees of mass gatherings and sports events from extreme heat and related environmental risks. It will develop tools and protocols to shield people from heat, air pollution, and UV rays; help event organizers manage heat risks and improve health systems; raise awareness and advocate for strong policies and regulations; focus on effective communication to ensure safety. By developing and implementation of global protocols and tools for risk management these measures, the initiative ensures a safer environment for everyone involved in these events, fostering global cooperation to address climate challenges.

Roadmap

Videos

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Infographics

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Documents

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Prevention and management of heat-related illness at mass gatherings: systematic reviews

Extreme heat is an increasingly important threat to health and operational continuity during mass gatherings. Climate change is increasing the frequency,...

Prevention and management of heat-related illness at mass gatherings: considerations for implementation

Extreme heat is an increasing health, safety and operational risk for mass gatherings. It can cause heat-related illness, worsen chronic disease, increase...

Prevention and management of heat-related illness at mass gatherings: developing evidence-based communication messages

Extreme heat is an important environmental and public health hazard. Exposure to high heat can cause heat-related illnesses and injuries and worsen underlying...

Prevention and management of heat-related illness at mass gatherings: risk assessment tool

Extreme heat is an increasing health, safety and operational risk for mass gatherings. It can cause heat-related illness, worsen chronic disease,...

Heat, air pollution and solar ultraviolet radiation: mass gathering-specific considerations and research gaps

The annually averaged global mean near-surface temperature in 2024 was 1.55 °C ± 0.13 °C above the 1850–1900 average. This made it...

Climate change and workplace heat stress: technical report and guidance

This publication provides an overview of evidence and guidance on the growing challenge of workplace heat stress in the context of climate change. It highlights...

This manual provides an overview of the main OSH risks faced by emergency responders during disease outbreaks and other emergencies, such as natural disasters,...

A standard graphic presentation promotes consistency in UVI reporting on news and weather bulletins, and improves people’s understanding of the concept....

Resources

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