Blue Planet Prize Story

Professor Guha-Sapir has launched a new project to investigate the causes of death in humanitarian crises. This research will go beyond simply counting the number of deaths and delve into the underlying causes of mortality in large-scale humanitarian crises, such as natural disasters, armed conflicts, and religious persecution. In many countries, death certificates are only issued for about one-third of deaths, and most do not specify the cause of death. To effectively address humanitarian crises, it is essential to obtain a more accurate understanding of the causes of death, whether from infectious disease, malnutrition, injury, heart disease, or other chronic conditions.

Professor Guha-Sapir believes that pursuing cross-disciplinary research and investigating the causes of death are crucial challenges for CRED moving forward.

Private life

Professor Guha-Sapir enjoys listening to music and gardening as hobbies. She grew up listening to traditional Indian music live, and still makes time to attend live concerts as much as possible. In the garden, she finds solace and tranquility in watching plants grow, wither, and come to life again.

Her partner, André Sapir, is an economist. Despite their different fields of study, they share a deep understanding of each other as fellow researchers. André's perspective as an economist sometimes gives Debby unexpected insights into her own work. He once suggested that she investigate the occupational characteristics of those affected by the famine. For example, during times of food scarcity, a barber’s services become less essential, making barbers among the first to face significant hardships. The same poverty can have vastly different impact depending on one’s occupation. André brought a completely different perspective to her field of public health. Debby holds André in deep respect for his unique perspective.

Message from Professor Guha-Sapir

“We need to understand that it is imperative to address the issues of people on the ground, especially in extreme climate conditions. While there have been numerous macro-level discussions and significant advancements such as electric cars and wind power, insufficient attention has been paid to improving the lives of those who are suffering on the ground. Local communities are at the forefront of climate change, despite not being responsible for its causes. Major Western countries bear responsibilities for climate issues, yet they are hesitant to provide adequate funding to poorer nations facing the brunt of climate change. We must substantially increase contributions to climate funds and demonstrate greater empathy for the plight of impoverished communities affected by floods, storms, and other disasters. Addressing the daily needs of people struggling with severely limited resources is crucial.”

“I think we must sit back and review what we have done for the last 30 years since the inception of COP. We have established an international framework and set specific targets for climate change and greenhouse gas emissions, but we have not seen any significant successes. Not only are we finding it difficult to limit the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but we are also going backwards. We must acknowledge that the path we’ve been on may not have been the right one. We need to learn lessons from this and determine how we can safeguard those currently on the front lines of climate change. We must urgently seek more effective adaptation strategies that enable people to manage potential future disasters.”

“Additionally, we need to change our lifestyles. Over time, our lives have become exceedingly consumer based. A consumer-based society brings about not only climate-related issues but also various negative aspects. People living in Global North could reduce high levels of consumption of consumer goods and control food waste. Climate disasters are set to increase in the near future. We must adapt our lifestyles to protect the vulnerable in every country of the world – rich and poor. We can begin with educating children and young adults – who are the future of our world - on environmental and climate issues.”