Fall has been eventful with a lot of climate news.  With fires, hurricanes and the recent UN and US Climate reports, everyone is feeling overwhelmed and honestly helpless.
 
I hope it helps to know that I see this as an incredibly positive time. 
 
We are being given the opportunity to change our ways, quickly and efficiently.  There is no other choice. 

Politicians who are aware of this are now listening.  There is a movement by our Congresswoman-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for a #greennewdeal – where she and young protestors sat in halls of Nancy Pelosi’s office – demanding change (see below).  Even France’s President Macron has gone forward with his initiative to ban glyphosate in his country by creating this website for Farmer’s to sign without the support of his country’s lawmakers – but with nearly 80% support of France’s people. And let’s not forget the incredible decision in favor of the groundskeeper in San Francisco who has cancer now from Monsanto’s Roundup, story here. 
 

with my host Nalini Sharma, Programme Management Officer Chemicals Division UN Environment. 

We are the superhero we have been waiting for and the efforts of the people, for the people are making a difference and will have a huge impact in these crucial times.

Two weeks ago I had the honor of speaking in Geneva at the International Environment House.  After my presentation we discussed how we can influence those who seem to pollute without care for life and only answer to money.  We must speak to their heart my host said and everyone agreed.  Big change is made when we come from the heart.  There is no more powerful action, then the action of love. 
 
Keep #beingthechange
 
Christine

By taking the demand straight to the halls of power, Ocasio-Cortez is building support for a policy that could stave off climate change and transform the economy. Take the time to read this article by Jim Pugh.

PFAs - Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of man-made chemicals that includes PFOA, PFOS, GenX, and many other chemicals. PFAs were developed by DuPont in the 1940s and you may know them in the products you use – non-stick pans, Scotchguard or the paper wrapper around your hamburger that is preventing the grease from leaking.
 
PFAs are incredibly toxic and DuPont single handedly polluted our entire water system with the creation of this non-biodegradable, man-made chemical.  And after several employees gave birth to children with severe deformities and others died of cancer, they knew of its toxic effects on our health, yet it was not banned in the US until 2015 and is still used in China.  Unfortunately newer forms of this chemical are still being used.  Even the green Patagonia ski jacket you purchased uses the newer chemical and it too is harmful to us and our environment (source). Why is it still being used?  Customer demand.  We have gotten used to high performance clothing - and when chemical companies are allowed to use new innovations with minimal testing – we find ourselves with a product we love and a host of ailments.  C6 is linked to infertility, thyroid issues and cancer – what every person seems to be suffering from in the US. 

In case you didn’t hear, microplastics are now in our food and water system and are something we all consume.  While we probably know the obvious places – natural ocean cleaners like mussels, oysters and shrimp (over 90% contain them) and of course sea salt – you may be surprised to know over 90% of bottled waters contain them too.  They are everywhere – even being found in honey.  While we are thankful Boyan Slat has deployed and is out there in the pacific now cleaning up the largest plastic swirl that can be seen from satellite photos, we have yet to create a way to clean up the tiny microscopic pieces we have coined microplastics. Even more concerning is we have no data on the harms of this in the human system, as seen here.

I unfortunately have no suggestions on how to avoid them entirely.  An oyster eaten in France will not contain less than the one eaten off the coast of Cali. You can stop drinking bottled water (which you shouldn’t anyhow), switch to Himalayan Salt from the mountains (although they have found the plastics in our air) and support oyster farms as they are amazing cleaners – but you may want to limit your consumption.  Ultimately we need to reduce our plastic consumption and carrying a stainless steel canteen and refraining from plastic plates, cups and cutlery, can make a huge difference.

Recently these three studies on eggs came my way:
Dioxins, furans, and polychlorinated biphenyls in hen eggs – a new source of hazard for consumers?
Dioxins in organic eggs: a review
The Egg Report: Contamination of chicken eggs from 17 countries by dioxins, PCBs, and hexachlorobenzene.

After reviewing both I was shocked to see that dioxins - carcinogens from pollution/manufacturing waste - were more prevalent - in some cases 50x more - than in industrialized eggs. 

How could this be?

Dioxins from manufacturing waste are airborne. This means while a farm upstate may be miles away from a factory - the wind can blow in toxins from North Carolina - or even Poland. 

Dioxins do not biodegrade. They are in our grasses and soil. So while a farm may have organic practices -  there is no preventing the sediment on the grasses the chickens eat or the soil they pick insects from. 

This is why the eggs from chickens in the industrialized building had relatively low dioxin levels and the chickens outdoors had extremely high levels. It is even more extreme if the farm is close to a manufacturing plant. 

What can we do?  One thing I am doing is reaching out to the researchers to see if meat and milk have been tested.  This information could certainly change an entire industry and their practices that have profited significantly off of the idea of health that could be false. 

Dioxins are attracted to fat cells. So while it goes against the new idea that fat is good - when eating dairy or cheese or meat - avoid high fat selections. Eat and drink the low fat options. Since plants/beans/seeds can be washed and do not have fat cells - their dioxin content is negligible in comparison. 

Ultimately what we need to do is prevent pollution and regulate emissions. Our current administration is trying to reverse this. Even the polluters think this is crazy.   And we need to press developing countries such as China and India to be leaders in solar and wind technology and to not invest in dirty technology like coal plants.

The good news is soil can be regenerated so once pollution is reduced - the soil can be made healthy again. Take a look at www.kisstheground.com for some hope. 

Love + hope will change the world.