Ever wonder why mosquito and tick-borne diseases seem to be on the rise? And why Lyme disease seems to be appearing as regularly as the common cold? Come hear Emergency Physician Matt Bivens speak about the relationship between climate change and insect borne diseases, and have the opportunity to ask questions.

Climate change presents one of the biggest health threats of our time. Initial concerns about climate change in the early 1990s focused on threats to ecosystems and all but ignored any connection to human health. Over the past three decades scientists have learned that these links are inextricable. Research now shows that climate change is having tangible effects on people’s health and the spread of disease. We can see evidence of this in Southeastern Massachusetts as local medical practices witness steady increases in insect-borne disease, propagated by warmer, wetter conditions and a broader range of ecological factors.

Matt Bivens, MD, is the medical director for EMS companies in southern Massachusetts, the chair of the emergency preparedness and disaster response committee of the Southcoast Hospitals Group, and the chair of Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility. Through the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center he holds an academic appointment at Harvard as Instructor in Clinical Medicine.