Alaska is ground zero for climate change — that’s the message of a new video issued by the White House detailing president Obama’s upcoming visit to the Last Frontier.
“In Alaska, glaciers are melting. The hunting and fishing upon which generations have depended—for their way of life, and for their jobs—are threatened,” the president says. “Storm surges once held at bay now endanger entire villages. As Alaskan permafrost melts, some homes are even sinking into the ground. The state’s God-given natural treasures are at risk.”
President Obama is the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Alaska Arctic. He will also be visiting Anchorage, where the U.S. has called a summit to discuss climate change with representatives from other Arctic nations.
