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Gary Cohen

President and Co-Founder Health Care Without Harm

Gary Cohen is a dedicated individual known as a co-founder and President of Health Care Without Harm, a global campaign promoting environmentally responsible healthcare practices.

With a commitment to linking a healthy environment with healthy individuals, Gary focuses on helping hospitals worldwide transition to sustainable practices for community wellness and resilience.

Gary Cohen's impact extends globally through his involvement with over 70 countries in fostering climate crisis awareness within the healthcare sector.

Beyond his role at HCWH, he serves as President of Practice Greenhealth, a U.S. affiliate with a substantial membership base and is a co-founder of Greenhealth Exchange, facilitating sustainable purchasing in the healthcare industry.

His active engagement includes being a member of the International Advisory Board of the Sambhavna Clinic, offering medical care to survivors of the Bhopal gas disaster in India.

Having devoted 35 years to environmental health issues, Gary has contributed significantly to publications and books on the subject.

Notable accolades include receiving the MacArthur 'Genius' award in 2015, recognition by the White House as a Champion for Change for Climate Change and Public Health in 2013, the Skoll Global Award for Social Entrepreneurship in 2006, and the Frank Hatch Award for Enlightened Public Service in 2007.

His educational background encompasses studies in South Asian Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and a BA in Philosophy from Clark University.

Gary Cohen's rich professional history involves roles such as Founder/Executive Director at Environmental Health Fund, Foundation Program Advisor at Various Funding Groups, Development Director and Co-Founder at Military Toxics Project, and Executive Director at National Toxics Campaign.

Highlights

Mar 27 · linkedin

Healthcare needs to divest from fossil fuels:

There are compelling reasons for health care organizations to divest from fossil fuels as part of their overall climate strategy:   Investments comprise a significant percentage of Scope 3 emissions for healthcare systems, so it needs to be part of their decarbonization strategy to get to net zero emissions. Healthcare and health based organizations can be critical validators to remove the social license of fossil fuel companies, which continue to eternalize harm to billions of people and the planet’s ecosystem while they continue to reap enormous profits and take advantage of the Ukraine War to justify it. Together, Exxon, Shell, BP, Chevron and TotalEnergy had $200 billion in profits in 2022: https://lnkd.in/eARmm5nD It’s a moral injury for healthcare organizations to continue their investment in fossil fuels given the science that has documented the extraordinary public health toll fossil fuel emissions take on people all over the world (even outside fossil fuel’s role in driving the climate crisis). Outside advocacy organizations are targeting healthcare organizations for their fossil fuel investments and it would be smart for those health systems to get ahead of this advocacy work rather than be on the defensive. There are also other organizations that are helping healthcare organizations invest their pension funds and endowments in companies that are part of the clean energy economy as well as companies that are local, racially diverse and sustainable in their own communities, so health systems can function as economic anchors in their communities for resilience and equity. Besides 2022, divesting from fossil fuels has also made economic sense for many organizations. And there are advisors that specialize in fossil free funds that can assist with this transfer of funds.

Gary Cohen
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Location

Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States