We Participated in the 2nd WHO Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health
Hi all, Madeleine here.
Several weeks ago, I had the honor of joining on behalf of Seeding Sovereignty, countless members of the global community of frontline fighters, environmental justice, leaders, health, justice, advocates, country, representatives, and health professionals at the Second Annual WHO Conference on Air Pollution and Health. The World Health Organization is amongst the more than 350 signatories of a letter that demands that governments lay out a legally binding global plan to phase out fossil fuel use.
This gathering was also led by our friends at the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty who organized and brought together voices of all kinds, and were kind enough to invite me to speak on behalf of the role that microplastics play as an air pollutant that disproportionally impacts low income communities of color in areas of heavy industry. It was incredibly inspiring to see so many people come together to share learnings and powerful messages from their lived experiences that global leaders desperately need to hear and listen to. The message is clear:
We have all the data needed to show that air pollution from fracking is one of the highest sources of mortality, and health professionals need to become climate champions.
The global fossil fuel industry seeds destruction in infinite ways. I was honored to sit on a panel with renowned scientist Sandra Steingraber, Bhavrheen Kandhari of Warrior Moms, Myrto Tilianaki of Human Rights Watch, and Aparna Bose of Press Trust India. My message to listeners and participants was that if we are not incorporating microplastics into this conversation, we are missing a huge section of the solution. Microplastics are the omnipresent yet invisible manifestation of petrocolonial forces, and together we can take action to fight fossil fuels by targeting microplastics, and how they make us sick.
Please follow along and support Seeding’s work as we continue to develop solutions and amplify voices of people most needing to be heard. A huge thanks once again to our friends at FFT and the WHO for hosting these critical moments – we must keep the momentum and not lose sight of the ultimate goal.
We have the solutions we need already — and we must shout to those who need to hear them most.
In Solidarity,
Madeleine and team