Dianna Cohen

Dianna Cohen is an American visual artist and activist.[1] She is the CEO and co-founder of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, an advocacy group and social movement organization which seeks to reduce plastic pollution.[2][3]

Dianna Cohen
Born1965
Los Angeles, CA
Alma materUniversity of California, Los Angeles
OccupationActivist and visual artist
Years active1989-present
Known forPlastic Pollution Coalition (co-founder)
Websitediannacohen.com

Early life and education

Cohen grew up in Los Angeles. Her father was a filmmaker, and her mother the director of the Los Angeles Free Clinic.[4] She attended UCLA, where she studied biology before shifting her major to art.[5]

Career

Following her graduation, Cohen began working in collage, initially using deconstructed brown paper bags, and later incorporating plastic. Her first solo exhibition of the bag series was in 1994.[5]

After eight years of working with plastic bags, Cohen realized the plastic was degrading. In a 2015 interview she said: “At first I got excited because I thought that it meant the plastic bags were ephemeral and organic like us, and that they had a finite lifespan.” In researching the subject, she discovered that "plastic photodegrades or heat-degrades by breaking apart, but does not disappear." [5] In 2009, after learning about the Great Pacific garbage patch, she founded the Plastic Pollution Coalition (PPC) with her sister, Julia Cohen, Manuel Maqueda, Daniella Russo and Lisa Boyle.[2][6] She has led the Plastic Pollution Coalition's efforts to eliminate the use of single-use containers for beer, water and other drinks at music festivals and concerts.[7]

Awards

Cohen has received awards for her environmental activism. She was named Environmentalist of the Year by SIMA in 2019.[8] In 2016, she was presented the inaugural Snow Angel Award by the Sun Valley Film Festival.[9]

Personal

Cohen and her partner, Jackson Browne, live in Los Angeles.[10] They were co-executive producers on the 2020 documentary The Story of Plastic. [11] She has surfed since 1996.[12]

References
  1. Brown, Elisha (2017-10-13). "An Artist Whose Mentors Are Scientists". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  2. "Plastic is choking the planet: Here's how one activist cut her consumption to zero". NBC News. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  3. Kurutz, Steven (2019-02-16). "Life Without Plastic Is Possible. It's Just Very Hard. (Published 2019)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  4. Danquah, Meri Nana Ama (1998-05-10). "Not All Moms Have Kids". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  5. "Dianna Cohen, CEO & Co-Founder of Plastic Pollution Coalition, Dreams of Plastic Free Touring". Planet Experts. 2015-03-06. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  6. Chollett, Giselle (2020-07-18). "18 Questions with the Founders of Plastic Pollution Coalition". Eco18. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  7. Greene, Andy (2014-11-17). "The Concert Industry's Slow Move Away From Plastic Bottles". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-12-21.
  8. Asch, Andrew | (May 16, 2019). "SIMA Announces Waterman's Honorees". www.apparelnews.net. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  9. "Snow Angel Award". Sun Valley Film Festival. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
  10. David, Mark (2010-04-14). "Jackson Browne Buys Historic House in Los Angeles". Variety. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  11. "'The Story Of Plastic' Documentary To Premiere On Discovery Channel In Honor Of Earth Day". www.msn.com. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  12. Carpenter, Susan (2006-04-13). "The fine art of surfboarding". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-12-16.


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