What is Pure Earth Philippines?
Pure Earth is an international non-profit organization dedicated to solving pollution problems in low- and middle-income countries, where human health is at risk. A joint report by UNICEF and Pure Earth reveals that an estimated 1 in 3 children – up to 800 million globally – has blood lead levels at or above 3.5 - 5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL), a level that the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have stated requires interventions. This is concerning as lead is known to be a potent neurotoxin and affects children's brains and overall growth and development. The report has prompted a global initiative called Protecting Every Child's Potential (PECP).
In view of this, Pure Earth Philippines, with the support of USAID, Clarios Foundation, Meridian BioScience and GiveWell, have done a desk review of the local lead and blood lead level studies in the Philippines, a blood lead level (BLL) survey with DOST FNRI expected to be completed this year in 13 areas of the country, and a formative research through a rapid marketplace survey (RMS) where different items in the market were tested for lead content.
What is the event about?
The online forum aims to raise awareness on the issue of lead poisoning and how it is related to nutrition, especially among Filipino children. Speakers will discuss how we can effectively and sustainably address the problem and why it is a worthwhile and viable initiative. There also remains a gap in the area of looking into environmental health factors affecting nutrition, including the threat of lead.
Who will speak at the event?
Larah O. Ibañez has been professionally engaged in development work for 15 years now. She believes that we should all care enough to do something for others, especially children, so they can live out their full potential. In the last decade, she's been serving as the Country Director of Pure Earth's representative office in the Philippines, overseeing a portfolio of programs and projects to solve underreported pollution problems that put human health largely at risk. Currently, she's working with the government and concerned sectors in implementing breakthrough efforts to address childhood lead poisoning in the country.
Dr. Lynn Crisanta R. Panganiban is the National Consultant for Public Health and Toxicology at Pure Earth Philippines. She is a doctor by profession and is a well-recognized professor, researcher and consultant with significant publications, engagements and fellowships locally and internationally over a span of close to 40 years. She has been Pure Earth's go-to expert for matters concerning impacts of environmental risks on public health. She's a professor at the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of the Philippines Manila College of Medicine. She is also one of the pioneers and still serves as a Senior Toxicology Consultant at the National Poison Management and Control Center of the Philippine General Hospital. The depth and range of her expertise is also tapped by the Pesticide Expert Panel and the Center for Cosmetic Regulation and Research of the Food and Drug Administration among others.
Daniel Kass is the Senior Vice President for Environmental Health at Vital Strategies. He is a notable expert on environmental health and environmental disease prevention, with nearly 30 years of experience in enforcement, policy and research programs. He brings this expertise to provide technical capacity and consultative services to help address environmental threats, especially in low- and middle-income countries—reducing air pollution, mitigating climate change, and improving water, sanitation, and transportation systems.
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