Professor Theo Colborn is an American environmental scientist and activist.  Through comprehensive analysis of available facts, and through her books and lectures, she has effectively initiated a profound global discussion about the survival of mankind and ecological systemson our planet. Dr Colborn’s research, mostly performed around the Great Lakes, has revealed how synthetic toxins disrupt the reproduction of birds and mammals and their affect on sensitive human hormonal systems, inducing the risk of cancer and reduced fertility. Former Vice President Al Gore has called her pioneering book “Our stolen future” a sequel to Rachel Carson’s world famous wake-up call “Silent Spring”.

European Commission Vice President Margot Wallström was during her mandate as the European Commissioner for the Environment one of the key persons behind the formation
of REACH, the most progressive legislative instrument for chemical control worldwide, and one of the most far-reaching environmental laws in the European Union. REACH is based on the precautionary principle, reversed burden of proof and substitution, with a special focus on substances that are persistent (non-biodegradable), toxic and bio-accumulating, i.e. they accumulate in animals and plants. Despite strong resistance from commercial interests, EU Comissioner Wallström succeeded in launching REACH as an important first step toward a new, more sustainable way of controlling and environmentally adapting the use of chemicals in our society.

Environmental engineer Jan Ahlbom and toxicologist Ulf Duus have systematically invented methods to reduce the negative impact of chemicals in daily life in Sweden, particularly in the Göteborg region. They have step-by-step tested market-based strategies in which customers are connected to producers and where economic incentives.