Thumbs up, thumbs down
Thumbs down to the possibility of climate change altering one of Connecticut’s defining characteristics — the change of seasons. A new study reports
that temperatures in the state are rising faster than in the rest of the world. As a consequence of warmer winters and hotter summers, there would be less snowfall and diminished autumn colors. Another study adds that hurricanes would have a stronger presence in New England.
Thumbs down to Connecticut’s struggles to get its youngest eligible residents vaccinated against COVID-19. Children aged 5-11 have been able to get
the vaccine since Nov. 2, yet the number of fully vaccinated in that age group is at a pretty dismal 22 percent. The state reported that as of Thursday, 39 percent of kids in the group had received at least one shot. As Dr. Brita Roy, director of population health for Yale Medicine, said, “22 percent is really low.” That would be true under any conditions, but it happens to be at a time when the number of infected children in hospitals is rising.
Thumbs up to Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz planning to push for more training for court officials — including judges — to improve how Connecticut deals
with incidents of domestic violence. Refining the understanding of coercive control among court officials is vital now that it is legally defined as a form of domestic abuse. Bysiewicz has long been a champion of domestic violence issues, and is ideally situated to help ensure survivors of domestic violence are appropriately represented throughout the legal process and to bolster public awareness.
Thumbs down to the departure of another UConn president. Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, who since 2014 has been CEO of UConn Health and since last year
has served as the University of Connecticut’s interim president, will resign next month to take a job at the Kentucky-based health insurance company Humana. Agwunobi had been serving since the sudden departure of Thomas Katsouleas only two years into a five-year term, and while he apparently had not been considered a candidate for the full-time president position, it still leaves the state’s flagship university rudderless yet again. The head of the school’s board of trustees said the school is in a “period of transition,” but it’s time for some stability.
Thumbs up to a win for Long Island Sound. The National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration has designated the area where the Connecticut and
Thames rivers flow into the Sound as a National Estuarine Research Reserve, which “represents a win for science-based decision-making and helping to enhance environmental education at all levels for the people of Connecticut,” Gov. Ned Lamont said. The designation will lead to increased research to improve decision-making and education about coastal habitat management. With the Sound responsible for about $9.4 billion in annual economic impact in the region, our most important natural resource must be preserved for the future, and research into local habitats will help ensure that happens.