The World Health Organization (WHO) assessed that up to a million of lives could be saved if the climate change goals in the 2015 Paris Agreement are achieved by 2050. The report indicates the lives spared will be mostly due to improved health, especially in countries with a high level of global emissions such as china and India. 7 million people die every year due to exposure to air pollution.

A move to a low-carbon energy in some instances, according to WHO, will also lead to healthier lifestyles, for example, cycling instead of driving, and that is likely to prevent diabetes and heart diseases. Dr. Maria Neira, Director of Public Health, Environmental and Social Determinants of Health for WHO explains, “The true cost of climate change is felt in our hospitals and in our lungs...When health is taken into account, climate change mitigation is an opportunity, not a cost.”

The report further adds that the benefits of living healthier will be twice as high as the economic cost of fighting global warming and air pollution.