With the recent release in Paris of the Summary for Policy Makers of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 4th Assessment Report, climate change has taken centre stage as a global concern. Al Gore’s Oscar winning film and best selling book –An Inconvenient Truth has also helped to inform the public of some of the broader issues involved.

In two recent global integrated assessment exercises of the IPCC and Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), the issue of the spread of dengue fever in the Caribbean has been highlighted. However, I should note that in both cases there was some grumbling in the corridors about the shortage of published references documenting the Caribbean Experience. In fact, most information came from Sam Rawlins who was involved in both exercises and I am happy to see this collaboration between the Public Health and Climate change communities. Internationally, our colleagues complain that people in the Caribbean are slow to write. It is in this context that I am pleased to see this book which will raise awareness of the adverse impacts of climate on public health and heighten the appreciation of the potential of a changing climate system as a threat to public health.

Climate Change Impact on Dengue: The Caribbean Experience brings together an excellent selection of contributors to share ideas on public health and climate change adaptation with a focus on two principal questions:

1. How can public health practitioners and policy-makers take climate variability and change into account in strategies, policies and measures to reduce the potential added burden of disease?
2. What lessons can be drawn from the long history of public health managing external environmental and other threats that can be applied to adaptation to climate variability and change?

A basic unifying concept is that the prerequisites for public health action are analogous to the determinants of adaptive capacity. I liked the fact that the chapters are laid out according to the prerequisites for public health action which are:

1. Awareness that the problem exists.
2. Sense that the problem matters.
3. Understanding of the causes.
4. Capability to deal with the problem.
5. Political will to influence.

I hope that this book will stimulate further work to fill some of the gaps in scientific knowledge and encourage some of our social science colleagues to join the effort of what so far has been largely driven by the natural science community. We need to look at adaptive capacity. The determinants of adaptive capacity are:

1. Range of available technological options
2. Availability and distribution of resources
3. Structure of critical institutions
4. Human capital
5. Social capital

For example, the Early Warning System looks at the science of providing a view of practical approaches for preventing exposure to climate-related hazards. An early warning system comprises a method of prediction and a mode of response.

Another strength of the book is explaining important uncertainties in the current understanding of the epidemiology of the disease. A perspective on the adoption of adaptation measures draws lessons from approaches to lifestyle changes. It points out the limitations of an emphasis on professional expertise that requires only passive cooperation from citizens. A general conclusion is that multiple channels should be engaged in behavioural change. Patience and persistence are required.

If I have a small critique it is that the book could have been more explicit in identifying what needs to be changed incrementally and what needs to be done differently?

In sum, I recommend this book highly for learning about interventions to protect public health from the adverse effects of weather extremes, climate variability and climate change. It provides an informative summary of lessons learned as we as a conceptual base for future studies.