BY MICHAEL COHEN
From my volunteer work over the past 30 years with environmental and health education and advocacy organizations, I’ve learned that there is an inextricable link between a healthy environment and overall human health.
Climate changes impacting our environment, air and water quality, along with increased extreme weather events, affect our physical health by increasing incidents of airborne illness, asthma, hypertension, heat stroke and our emotional health by increasing stress and anxiety, especially among youth.
Recreational activities are at risk due to invasive species and harmful algal blooms that limit access to open spaces and waters, impacting hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities. Warming winters reduce snow cover, affecting the ski industry and groundwater supply. Farming and forestry are also impacted by rising temperatures, droughts and extreme flooding, washing pollutants into rivers, lakes and the ocean.
Concerned citizens are working to address these climate issues because they see it as a race to save the Earth and public health. They are learning about science-based solutions to create a cleaner and more resilient climate and a healthier future for all. These solutions also foster climate leadership and justice by engaging communities in co-creating meaningful solutions.
In this context, environmentalists and health advocates are concerned about the 2025 Presidential Transition Project, also known as Project 2025, organized by the Heritage Foundation. Project 25 promotes conservative policy proposals to reshape the federal government and consolidate executive power under Donald Trump, should he win the 2024 election.
Project 25 would drastically reduce government size, placing environmental and health functions under newly appointed staff. It offers recommendations to dismantle federal agencies, particularly environmental and health agencies and their regulations.
The Project 25 recommendations would eliminate many vital environmental protections managed by civil servant experts who make decisions based on science and data, serving the public good rather than political or business interests. The Environmental Protection Agency, Energy Regulatory Commission, Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, NOAA, National Institutes of Health, CDC, and CMS are all mentioned in Project 25 and are on the chopping block. Their roles in protecting human health and promoting a climate-resilient environment are set to be severely diminished.
For example, Project 25 would open ecologically sensitive public lands to more oil and natural gas drilling, reduce funding for renewable energy, and threaten environmental justice and community engagement programs. It would impact those most affected by climate change: underserved populations and communities of color. It would also change how science is used to understand climate change, particularly the role of CO2 and methane in warming our planet.
If Project 25 is implemented, research presented by biased individuals could be accepted as reliable as evidence from reputable scientists, leading to faster climate warming, increased flooding and more intense storms. This would also increase heat and airborne diseases, further impacting our health and safety. Any ongoing environmental justice initiatives would be threatened.
Though Mr. Trump has tried to distance himself from the project, his policy agenda aligns with many of its goals. The Heritage Foundation’s role was prominent at the Republican Convention in July, and several former senior Trump administration officials are involved in Project 2025.
Climate change is having a real and increasing impact on human health and natural resources. Protecting these resources is a cause that most New Hampshire residents support, regardless of political orientation. Hunters, hikers, anglers and conservationists share a common ethic to protect our environment for future generations. Protecting natural resources also protects our health.
In New Hampshire, we must work to ensure that Project 25 does not become a reality. Climate issues are not political; they are scientific facts. Reports from the National Academy of Science, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the UN support this.
As a citizen, I plan to vote for candidates who understand climate change as a threat to our health and safety and who will address it through research-based policies. I will support candidates who encourage access to affordable and equitable health care.
Each of us can do our civic duty by voting. This election cycle, the future of democracy, our health and our planet should not be left to chance. By casting our votes, we can defend democracy, our health and our planet and prevent the harmful effects of Project 25.
Michael J. Cohen is the principal consultant for MJC HealthSolutions, and also serves as the associate director for Cross-Sector Alliances and Policy at the Center for Patient Advocacy Leaders.
