Strategic Health Integration for Equitable and Localized Decision-making (SHIELD) in a Climate-Stressed Humanitarian Setting in Turkana, Kenya

This project will transform how climate-health risks are recognized, prioritized, and addressed in Turkana County, Kenya—a climate-stressed, refugee-hosting region that remains under-represented in national health and development planning. Building on established relationships with refugee and host communities in Kakuma and Kalobeyei, we will co-produce actionable evidence on three initially identified climate-health threats—heat stress, vector-borne diseases, and climate-related mental health impacts—which will be further refined through participatory engagement with local stakeholders. These threats remain absent from policy and planning processes due to fragmented data, limited community voice, and siloed systems. We will address these gaps through a strategic, three-track approach: (1) co-producing knowledge with communities and decision-makers using participatory methods (seasonal calendars, storytelling, photovoice, body mapping), (2) generating empirical evidence through environmental sensors, wearable health monitors, health surveillance, and vector ecology, and (3) integrating these insights through policy-oriented systems modeling to support decision-making. Our transdisciplinary, locally embedded team includes researchers, county planners, humanitarian partners, and community leaders. Guided by the Rapid Outcome Mapping Approach (ROMA), we will deliver policy-facing outputs including dashboards, policy simulators, and visual narratives. These tools will inform the County Integrated Development Plan , budget decisions, and early warning protocols, amplifying lived experience and enabling anticipatory governance in Turkana.