Behind the Sandy-Hassmiller Climate & Health Initiative are Lewis G. Sandy, M.D. (1982) and Susan Hassmiller, R.N., Ph.D., FAAN, whose decades of experience in leadership and public health inspired their investment in advancing climate and health research, an intersection they are both passionate about.

A Shared Sense of Urgency to Advance Climate and Health Research

Hassmiller’s journey in advancing climate and health research began fifty years ago when she first joined the American Red Cross. Since then, she has assisted on the front lines of many national disasters, including Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, and witnessed the increasing frequency and impact of climate-related crises.

“I have seen with my own eyes and felt with my own heart the people who were devastated, displaced, and lost everything,” she says.

As her role with the Red Cross evolved, Hassmiller moved into policy and leadership positions and now serves as national chair of the Red Cross’s Community Adaptation Program, which helps communities become more resilient and better prepared for future storms through advancing climate and health research.

As a physician and health systems leader, Sandy has seen the impact of climate change at the institutional level — including close to his North Carolina home, where Hurricane Helene caused power outages, blocked roads, and water system failures that brought chaos to local hospitals.

“We have a challenging circumstance where it seems the impact of the changing climate on individuals, on health systems, and on communities is happening more quickly and at greater magnitude than even the climate researchers had forecast,” he says.

Building on a Strong Foundation

Sandy and Hassmiller’s partnership began over 30 years ago as colleagues at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. After both lost their first spouses, they reconnected, and three years ago they married. As they considered their shared philanthropic priorities, climate and health rose to the top.

“I think the genesis of wanting to do something in climate and health came from us exploring what was important in our lives,” says Sandy, regarding advancing climate and health research. “As we considered how our overall giving corresponded to what we care about, we realized we had a lot of passion and interest in this area but weren’t doing anything specific to climate and health. So we decided to close that gap.”

Read the full article about advancing climate and health research by Katie Kazakos at Michigan Medicine.