All Resources

Go PVC-Free for Back to School

Worried about toxic chemicals in your children’s products? This year, when you send your kids off to school, send them off with school supplies that are free of PVC, the poison plastic. The Center for Health, Environment and Justice (CHEJ) is proud to announce the release of our Back-to-School Guide to PVC-Free School Supplies to help you make healthy shopping choices that are safer for your kids, your community and the environment. This guide lists the most common back-to-school supplies made out of toxic PVC and suggests safer PVC-free products in over 20 product categories.

Prenatal Airborne Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Exposure and Child IQ at Age 5 Years

The Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health released a new study today, published in the latest issue of Pediatrics. The article, "Prenatal Airborne Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Exposure and Child IQ at Age 5 Years," shows that prenatal exposure to environmental pollutants known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can adversely affect a child's intelligence quotient or IQ. PAHs are chemicals released into the air from the burning of coal, diesel, oil and gas, or other organic substances such as tobacco. They are widespread in urban environments and throughout the world. This is the first study to report an association between PAH exposure and IQ, which is an important predictor of future academic performance. Fortunately, airborne PAH concentrations can be reduced through currently available controls, alternative energy sources and policy interventions.

Shaping Our Legacy: Reproductive Health and the Environment

Shaping Our Legacy is a non-technical summary of the latest science on reproductive health and how it may be impaired by environmental chemicals. The Spanish translation now makes this information available to the Spanish-speaking population in the United States, Latin America, Europe and around the globe. So far, 1,200 printed copies of the English version have been distributed and over 9,500 electronic copies of the report have been downloaded from our website. We’re hoping that our Spanish translation will expand our reading audience, domestically and internationally and transmit our message to a larger portion of the global community. Shaping Our Legacy was translated by PRHE's research intern, Julieta Pisani-McCarthy. Julieta holds graduate degrees in Spanish Translation and Interpretation, and in International Environmental Policy. She is a federally and State certified court interpreter and a staff interpreter in the California Superior Court system. Please join us in thanking her for her invaluable contribution to the field of reproductive health!

State Leadership in Formulating and Reforming Chemicals Policy: Actions Taken and Lessons Learned

This report examines states' efforts in reforming the way chemicals in commerce are managed and analyzes chemicals policies that have been proposed or implemented at the state level.

Why the Adage "The Dose Makes the Poison" Can be Toxic to Corporate Chemicals Policy

This blog post, one of a series of monthly blog posts on toxic chemicals at greenbiz.com, urges corporate executives to get a second opinion if their science advisor or trade association says "the dose makes the poison" in response to controversy over small amounts of chemicals in products. The updated version of this adage, "The dose and the timing make the poison", is a superior guide to positioning companies for market success.

New National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network

The National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network is a system of integrated health, exposure, and hazard information and data from a variety of national, state, and city sources. On the Tracking Network, you can explore information and view maps, tables, and charts about health and environment across the country. This tool was created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Declare your independence from toxic chemicals!

Chemicals are a part of our lives. But when they threaten our health and safety, we have a right to know. Every day we are unknowingly exposed to toxic chemicals where we live, where we work, and where our children play. If this truly is a time of change, this is something that needs changing - now. Declare your independence from toxic chemicals!

A Common Agenda for Health & Environment

Nearly 100 leaders of healthcare, community development, environmental, labor and agriculture organizations began a conversation about the world we want to leave our children, and what it will take to get there within a generation. Over the course of a year, we developed A Common Agenda for Health and Environment: a vision of the future one generation from now, set Generational Goals to be accomplished by then, and chose priority actions to lead us there. The process of developing Generational Goals and holding decision-makers accountable to progress towards them have helped people, governments and businesses in other countries make major strides towards their visions of a sustainable future. We hope that this effort will contribute to similar success in the United States — where there is both urgent need and great opportunity for courageous decision-making by individuals and institutions — with the result of a new era of health and well-being for future generations and the natural world.

Safe School Siting Conference Call Series

Center for Health, Environment & Justice is hosting a three part conference call series on community impacts of the lack of laws preventing the building of schools on or near sources of pollution, learn about CHEJ's Model School Siting Guidelines, and learn how to pass a school siting policy in your community.

Capitol Hill Summit on Sustainable Communities, Environmental Justice and the New Economy

This is a document describing plans for a 2009 Capitol Hill Summit on Sustainable Communities, Environmental Justice and the New Economy.