The first South East Asia Regional Heat and Health Forum took place in Singapore from 5-12 January. This major event, organised under the auspices of the Global Heat and Health Information Network (GHHIN), brought together experts, researchers and policy-makers and provided a unique platform to discuss the growing challenges associated with extreme heat and its impact on health. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), through its Global First Aid Reference Centre, played a key role in highlighting the importance of first aid during heat waves. As global warming accelerates, heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense, directly affecting people’s livelihoods and health. Discussions at the Forum underlined the wide range of issues related to this crisis, from managing the impacts in urban and indoor environments, to occupational safety, maternal and child health, and the links between extreme weather events and health emergencies.

The Forum provided a unique opportunity to strengthen our role in protecting populations. One of the highlights was its participation in a session on “First Aid in Heat Waves”, where practical tools and innovative initiatives were shared around 3 main axes:
– Training and awareness: Establishing training courses tailored to the risks of extreme heat helps build the capacity of local populations to recognise and manage the first signs of heat stress. For example, Brunei has incorporated heat stress prevention into its vocational training programmes,
raising awareness among workers of the importance of protecting themselves from the heat.

– Installing specialised equipment: Innovation and the use of tools can make first aid more effective, as demonstrated by the CarbonCool Full Body Suit, a system designed to quickly lower the body temperature of heatstroke victims, which was launched at the Forum.

– Working with local stakeholders: This is one of the Forum’s key objectives, with the idea that partnerships and local ownership can catalyse sustainable results. In Singapore, for example, a number of initiatives have been launched, such as the training of migrant workers as safety ambassadors,
equipped with simple but effective teaching materials such as computer graphics to share best practices in preventing and managing heat-related risks.

The Forum also marked the official launch of the SEA Heat Health Hub, a regional hub for building resilience to extreme heat in Southeast Asia. Lessons from the Health and Heat Forum in South-East Asia have shown that collective, coordinated action combining prevention, technological innovation and community action can make a difference. In many countries, heatwaves are not yet recognised as disasters in their own right, hampering efforts to better prevent and respond to them. As a result, first

aid is not only an immediate response to emergencies, but also a powerful tool for raising awareness,
training and protecting communities in the face of tomorrow’s climate challenges.