Gary Cohen reflects on 2017

2017 reflection

[Medium] As the year comes to a close, I would like to take this opportunity to reflect on our work together and our commitment to our mission.

I believe 2017 will be remembered as the year climate change came home to Americans. The historic images of polar bears on melting ice caps has given way to images of families losing their homes, people fleeing for safety, and communities struggling to recover from financial devastation.

2017 has proven to be one of the hardest years yet. We experienced one of the worst hurricane seasons in history, displacing tens of thousands of families. We witnessed the crippling of Puerto Rico’s health care system when the electrical grid went down and even now after several months, millions of people are still without electricity. We watched thousands of people evacuate as devastating wildfires scorched the west coast.

All told, climate-related disasters this year will cost the U.S. economy more than $265 billion in damages – a figure that does not include the enormous public health impact and trauma that will continue to plague our communities for years to come.

Climate change has moved from something in the far-off distance to a reality that people are feeling in their daily lives...

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