Talk by CT Environmental Commissioner to Explore Connecticut’s Leadership on Climate Change and the Need for a National Partnership

New Haven, Conn. — The Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will discuss how the state government and citizens alike are taking steps to address the potential impacts of climate change, on Thursday, Feb. 21, at 4:30 p.m. at the Peabody Museum.

Commissioner Gina McCarthy will deliver the talk, “Climate Change in Connecticut and Across the U.S. – Meeting the Challenge,” at the Peabody Museum of Natural History on 170 Whitney Avenue. The talk is sponsored by the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy, Yale Project on Climate Change and the Center for Business and the Environment at Yale. The talk is free and open to the public.

Commissioner McCarthy will explore the issue of climate change in Connecticut and New England, as well as the steps being taken by state government to address it. She will also discuss how states may serve as partners with the federal government as Congress begins to explore possible legislation and regulations to combat climate change on a national level. Finally, Commissioner McCarthy will address ways in which citizens can become engaged in addressing this important issue locally.

Appointed by Governor M. Jodi Rell as the Commissioner of the state’s DEP in December 2004, Commissioner McCarthy oversees the state agency with primary responsibility for protecting Connecticut’s environment, natural resources and wildlife and for maintaining state parks and forests. She joined the Connecticut DEP after working on environmental issues at the state and local level for 25 years in a variety of high-ranking positions for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Just prior to joining the Connecticut DEP, she served as the Deputy Secretary of Operations for the Massachusetts Office of Commonwealth Development, a "super Secretariat" that coordinates policies and programs of that state’s environmental, transportation, energy and housing agencies.

In Connecticut, Commissioner McCarthy is working on important environmental priorities, such as continuing to improve the health of Long Island Sound and the state’s air quality; reinvigorating the state park system; implementing strategies and recommendations included in Connecticut’s innovative Climate Change Action Plan; completing a new solid waste master plan; and developing new strategies to protect the state’s natural resources.

Commissioner McCarthy received a Bachelor of Arts in Social Anthropology from the University of Massachusetts, Boston and a joint Master of Science in Environmental Health Engineering and Planning and Policy from Tufts University.

The Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy seeks to advance fresh thinking and analytically rigorous approaches to environmental decision making – across disciplines, sectors, and boundaries. It is a joint initiative between the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and the Yale Law School.

The Yale Project on Climate Change seeks to: 1) elevate public discourse and engagement with climate change science and solutions, and 2) catalyze action by both the general public and leaders of government, business, academia, and the media through improved knowledge and understanding of climate change causes, impacts, and solutions.

The Center for Business and the Environment at Yale’s mission is to be a leading academic center in the global advancement of knowledge and solutions at the business-environment interface through programs that support student and faculty interests in research, education and outreach. It is a joint initiative between the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and the Yale School of Management.