The Summit of Mayors Cork City – Thematic Overview

The Cork Compact on Climate and Health is a city-led framework for accelerating practical climate-health action across Europe. It recognises that cities are on the frontline of both climate change and public health, and that many of the systems shaping people’s daily lives - transport, housing, food, nature, public space, and emergency preparedness - are also the systems that can deliver some of the greatest health, equity, and climate gains.

The Compact builds on the momentum of the Pan-European Commission on Climate and Health Call to Action, launched at the World Health Assembly on 17 May 2026.  In particular, it functions to operationalize scaling up local, community-based solutions for climate and health. It translates this regional call into a practical agenda for cities, recognising the role of local governments, communities, and urban networks in turning evidence and political commitment into action.

Cross-Cutting Foundations

The Cork Compact is guided by shared principles that apply across all five thematic pillars. These principles ensure that climate and health action advances equity, strengthens prevention and resilience, values community participation, and remains evidence-informed and accountable.

The Compact also recognises that strong implementation requires more than ambition. Cities need integrated governance, reliable data, meaningful community participation, shared accountability, and enabling support from all levels of governments to turn commitments into action.

Together, these cross-cutting foundations help ensure that the Compact is a practical framework for healthier, more resilient, and more equitable cities.

Across all five thematic pillars, the Cork Compact seeks to:

• advance health equity and reduce avoidable inequalities;
• strengthen resilience and preparedness across communities and systems;
• prioritise prevention and long-term wellbeing;
• value lived experience and community participation;
• support intergenerational responsibility and environmental sustainability;
• promote integrated, cross-sectoral governance and accountability;
• encourage measurable action, shared learning, and continuous improvement. 

1. Moving Cities for Healthier Lives

Urban Mobility, Sustainable Transport and Active Travel

How people move through a city shapes their health, wellbeing, and daily quality of life. Transport systems influence physical activity, air quality, road safety, mental wellbeing, social connection, and access to jobs, education, health care, and essential services.

This pillar focuses on transforming urban mobility so that walking, cycling, and public transport become safer, more accessible, affordable, and attractive options for all residents. It recognises that transport decisions are also health and climate decisions. Cleaner, more active, and better-connected mobility systems can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, support physical activity, and create more liveable neighbourhoods.

The pillar also highlights the importance of equity. Children, older people, people with disabilities, lower-income households, and residents in underserved neighbourhoods often experience the greatest barriers to safe and reliable mobility. Cities can respond by designing transport systems with communities, using local knowledge and lived experience to shape streets, routes, public spaces, and services that work for everyone.

2. Healthy Homes for Stronger Communities

Safer, Energy-Efficient, Future-Ready Buildings and Housing

Where people live has a major influence on their health. Cold, damp, poorly ventilated, overcrowded, or overheating homes can contribute to respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease, poor mental health, and reduced quality of life. Energy poverty also places pressure on many households, particularly those already experiencing economic disadvantage.

This pillar focuses on making homes and buildings healthier, safer, more energy-efficient, and more resilient to a changing climate. Improving housing quality is both a public health intervention and a climate action. Better insulation, ventilation, low-carbon heating, flood protection, and heat resilience can reduce emissions while improving health, comfort, and affordability.

The pillar recognises that housing improvements must reach the people and communities with the greatest need. Residents, tenant groups, housing providers, community organisations, and trusted local partners all have an important role in shaping solutions that are accessible, trusted, and practical. Healthy homes are a foundation for stronger communities, social stability, and climate resilience.

3. Nourishing Communities for a Healthy Future

Sustainable and Resilient Urban Food Systems

Food is closely connected to health, culture, identity, community life, and local resilience. What people eat, how food is produced and distributed, who has access to nutritious and affordable food, and how food connects people to place all shape health and wellbeing.

This pillar focuses on building sustainable and resilient urban food systems that support health, equity, climate action, and local economies. Cities can influence food environments through public procurement, planning, markets, school and institutional food programmes, food education, community initiatives, and waste reduction.

The pillar also recognises that food insecurity is a growing challenge for many urban communities, particularly as climate change disrupts supply chains and increases pressure on food systems. Community food initiatives, local markets, food partnerships, community gardens, and food policy councils can help strengthen resilience and social connection. By working with communities, cities can create food systems that are healthier, more sustainable, culturally appropriate, and more responsive to local needs.

4. Nature and Biodiversity for Climate-Ready Cities

Green and Blue Infrastructure for Health and Climate Adaptation

Nature and biodiversity is essential to healthier and more resilient cities. Parks, trees, rivers, wetlands, green corridors, and community gardens help cool neighbourhoods, absorb floodwater, improve air quality, support biodiversity, and create spaces for physical activity, social connection, and mental restoration.

This pillar focuses on protecting, restoring, and expanding green and blue infrastructure as a core part of health, climate adaptation, and urban wellbeing. Access to nature can support mental health, reduce stress, encourage active lifestyles, and strengthen social cohesion. It also helps cities adapt to heat, flooding, and other climate-related risks.

The pillar places strong emphasis on equity. Access to quality green and blue spaces is often uneven, with underserved neighbourhoods facing higher exposure to heat, pollution, and environmental stress while having fewer natural spaces. Cities can respond by investing in neighbourhoods with the greatest need and by supporting community stewardship, resident-led greening, school nature programmes, community gardens, and local biodiversity initiatives.

5. Prepared and Protected Communities for Generations to Come

Climate Adaptation, Health System Resilience and Community Preparedness

Climate change is already affecting cities, communities, and health systems. Heatwaves, flooding, storms, wildfires, poor air quality, and other climate-related events can cause illness, injury, displacement, mental health impacts, and disruption to essential services. These risks are placing growing pressure on health systems, water, energy, emergency response, and community support services. They also raise questions of intergenerational responsibility, as the decisions made today will shape the health, safety, and resilience of children, young people, and future generations.

This pillar focuses on strengthening city preparedness, health system resilience, and community capacity to respond to climate-related risks. Cities have an important role in developing climate and health resilience plans, early warning systems, heat-health action plans, emergency response protocols, and outreach systems for people most at risk. It also recognises the need to embed climate resilience into health system planning, workforce awareness, procurement and care pathways, so that services can remain safe, reliable, equitable, and sustainable under growing climate pressures.

The pillar recognises that resilience depends on both strong institutions and strong communities. Older people, young children, people with chronic health conditions, people with disabilities, lower-income households, migrants, and residents in exposed areas may face greater risks during climate emergencies. Community organisations, voluntary groups, neighbourhood networks, and local leaders are essential partners in identifying risks, reaching vulnerable residents, and supporting recovery. Mental health and psychosocial wellbeing are also central to preparedness, particularly for communities affected by displacement, trauma, climate anxiety, and repeated exposure to extreme events. Prepared and protected cities are those that plan ahead, act early, and work together to safeguard health and wellbeing for people today and for generations to come.