The library will be closed Sunday, March 31st, for Easter

Memorial Hall Library

Climate Change and Health in New England Virtual Talk

Caleb Dresser, MD
Monday, September 21, 2020 - 7:00pm

A recording of this program is available here.

This program will take place over Zoom Webinar. Registration is required here.

Climate change will have - and is having - a profound effect on conditions in New England. Dr. Caleb Dresser will explain how  changes in regional climate are expected to affect human health in coming years, exploring changes in heat-related illnesses, vector-borne diseases such as Lyme and West Nile, risk from coastal storm surges and intensifying hurricanes, and other issues. He will also discuss how communities can adapt to stay healthy as conditions change in coming decades, sharing examples from the Mystic River watershed and the City of Boston. His presentation will be followed by Q & A.

Dr. Caleb Dresser is the 2019-2021 Fellow in Climate and Human Health of the LCF Consortium on Climate Science and Health Policy through the Department of Emergency Medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. His current work focuses on  means to address health needs during and after climate-related disasters, with particular attention to heat waves and tropical cyclones. He is currently studying the hazards posed by extreme heat events and weather-related electrical outages for patients in communities near Boston, including the threat that these can pose to patients with specific medical vulnerabilities. He is also examining the long-term health impacts of hurricanes and other climate-related disasters, including issues of prolonged loss of access to medical services and temporary and permanent migration of affected populations. Caleb completed his medical education at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and his residency in Emergency Medicine through the Harvard Affiliated Emergency Medicine Residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.  He is currently enrolled in the Master of Public Health program at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and practices emergency medicine as a member of Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians.

This program is a collaboration of Memorial Hall Library and WECAN (Working to Educate for Climate Action Now).