The year 2024 broke several temperature records: it was the hottest ever recorded, and its summer was also the warmest to date. A study published in Nature Medicine has estimated that 62,775 heat-related deaths occurred in Europe between 1 June and 30 September of that year. These mortality figures are 23.6% higher than the approximately 50,800 estimated for the summer of 2023, and 8.1% lower than the nearly 67,900 estimated for the summer of 2022. 

Three education experts at the University of Kansas have written a new article that outlines a host of issues that have plagued education research and limited how effective it can be. Things such as peer review fatigue, overgeneralization and conflicting results have kept researchers from leading to positive change in education. However, the age of AI presents an opportunity to rethink how education is done for new generations of scholars and educators, they write.

Despite the expansion of virtual care in Ontario prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, specialist physicians did not expand reach to patients living at great distances from where they provided care, found new research published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.250166

Childhood exposure to chemicals used to make plastic household items presents growing health risks that can extend long into adulthood, experts from NYU Langone Health report. This is the main conclusion after a review of hundreds of the latest studies on the topic, publishing online Sept. 21 in the journal The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.

Peace Talks Between Türkiye and the PKK Offer a Historic Opportunity for Environmental Restoration

The ongoing conflict between Türkiye and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has caused significant ecological damage in the region. The recent call by the PKK leader for disarmament presents a unique chance for peace and environmental recovery. A new publication by the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH) emphasizes the importance of including environmental restoration in peace negotiations to ensure lasting peace and justice. The policy recommendations highlight the need to address ecological harm, involve local communities, and promote sustainable recovery models.