Women's Voices for the Earth (WVE) is a feminist, women-led, North American
environmental organization that specializes in research and advocacy regarding
toxic chemicals used in products that disproportionately impact women's health, including
cosmetics
Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect ...
, menstrual care products, professional salon and cleaning products. WVE is a
non-profit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
(
501(c)(3)
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...
) whose mission is to amplify women's voices to eliminate toxics that harm communities and health. With its inclusive vision of environmental work WVE has become a hub for visionary feminist environmentalism that recognizes the systemic connections between health, class, race, and the environment. Addressing the inter-connectivity of these various channels of exposure to toxic chemicals has been key to WVE's approach which is multi-scalar: targeting consumer behaviors, corporate practices, and government policies.
History
Women's Voices for the Earth (WVE) began in
Missoula, Montana, in 1995 in response to a lack of diversity in the environmental movement. Early work focused on local issues including, reducing pesticide spraying by state and local agencies, addressing air pollution from a nearby mill, and stopping a proposed goldmine on Montana's Blackfoot River. In 2007, WVE went national to address toxic chemicals exposures through production, distribution, use and disposal of products.
Accomplishments
2020
:• Passes the Cosmetic Fragrance and Flavor Ingredient Right to Know Act of 2020 (SB312-Leyva), making California the first government in the world to require the public disclosure of hazardous fragrance and flavor ingredients.
2019
:• Passes bill A.164-A/S.2387-B in New York (introduced by Assemblymember
Linda Rosenthal
Linda B. Rosenthal (born November 12, 1957) represents District 67 as a Democrat in the New York State Assembly, which includes parts of Manhattan's Upper West Side and Clinton/Hell's Kitchen neighborhoods.
Early life
Linda Rosenthal was bor ...
and Senator
Roxanne Persaud
Roxanne Persaud (born March 1, 1966) is a Guyanese-American politician. She is a Democrat and a member of the New York Senate for the 19th district, which includes portions of Canarsie, East New York, Brownsville, Mill Basin, Sheepshead Bay, ...
), making it the first state in the nation to require period product makers to disclose ingredients.
:• Moves Summer's Eve to remove harmful colorants from their vaginal washes, as well as specific preservatives linked to cancer.
2018
:• Passes worker and consumer health bill in California, AB 2775 (Assemblymember
Ash Kalra), requiring manufacturers to disclose ingredients on the labels of professional cosmetics with co-sponsors, California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, Black Women for Wellness and Breast Cancer Prevention Partners
:• Releases new data on fragrance ingredients, revealing a third of all fragrance chemicals currently in use are either known to be toxic, or considered potentially toxic by scientists around the world.
:• Releases in-depth investigative report on the
Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) Panel's failure to protect the public and manufacturers.
2017
:• Moves Procter & Gamble, the world's largest consumer products company, to voluntarily start disclosing all fragrance ingredients above 0.01% in their products, including period care products, cleaning and personal care products.
:• Passes state bill SB 258, The Cleaning Product Right to Know Act of 2017, which requires disclosure of ingredients used in institutional and household cleaning products on product label and online.
:• Hosts a rally in Washington, DC with support of Congresswoman
Grace Meng to increase awareness of the need for menstrual care product safety.
2016
:• Commissions and releases a
GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals
The GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals is a transparent, open standard for assessing chemical hazard that supports alternatives assessment for toxics use reduction through identifying chemicals of concern and safer alternatives. It is used by research ...
analysis of the fragrance chemical,
Galaxolide
Galaxolide (trade name; also known as Abbalide, Pearlide, Astrolide, Musk 50, Polarlide; chemical name 1,3,4,6,7,8-hexahydro-4,6,6,7,8,8,-hexamethyl-cyclopenta 'g''enzopyran or HHCB, hexamethylindanopyran) is a synthetic musk with a clean sweet ...
, revealing the chemical is highly toxic to aquatic life and persistent, meaning it does not break down easily in the environment.
:• Files a joint lawsuit with
Environmental Working Group (EWG) against the Food and Drug Administration for its failure to protect the public and professional salon workers from dangers associated with popular hair straightening treatments.
:• Petitions the FDA to address harmful colorants in vaginal washes, highlighting that colorants found in some washes come in contact with vaginal mucous membranes – violating the FDA's use restrictions.
2015
:• Moves two of the world's largest manufacturers of menstrual care products — Procter & Gamble and Kimberly Clark — to start disclosing ingredients used in their tampons and pads.
:• Releases first of its kind report, Unpacking the Fragrance Industry: Policy Failures, the Trade Secret Myth and Public Health, on the failures of the fragrance industry's self-regulated safety program.
2014
:• Convinces SC Johnson & Son to disclose all fragrance ingredients down to .09% in their products.
:• Releases Beauty and Its Beast: Unmasking the Impacts of Toxic Chemicals on Salon Workers a report that documents the impact of exposure to toxic chemicals on salon worker health.
:• Organizes the third annual Healthy Salons Week of Action in Washington DC, with salon workers, to collectively advocate for increased salon worker health, safety and rights.
2013
:• Moves Procter and Gamble to reformulate and drastically reduce the carcinogen 1,4 dioxane from their laundry detergents.
:• Releases Chem Fatale: Potential Health Effects of Toxic Chemicals in Feminine Care Products.
2012
:• Releases Secret Scents: How Hidden Fragrance Allergens Harm Public Health, moving Simple Green, Clorox, and Reckitt-Benckiser to agree to disclose hidden allergens in fragrance.
:• Convinced
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company i ...
, one of the largest cosmetic companies in the world, to phase out chemicals that can cause cancer and harm health from all of its products in 57 countries.
2011
:• Convinced the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food s ...
and
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration'' (OSHA ) is a large regulatory agency of the United States Department of Labor that originally had federal visitorial powers to inspect and examine workplaces. Congress established the agenc ...
to issue a warning letter and hazard alert on the formaldehyde-containing Brazilian Blowout hair straightening :treatment.
:• Convinced
Clorox
The Clorox Company (formerly Clorox Chemical Company) is an American global manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products. As of 2020 the Oakland, California based company had approximately 8,800 employees worldwide. Net sales ...
to become the first mainstream cleaning product company to disclose all ingredients in their products, including a master list of :fragrance ingredients, and to remove synthetic musks.
2010
:• Convinced
Simple Green to remove phthalates and synthetic musks from products.
:• Released "Not So Sexy" on toxic chemicals in leading perfumes and cologne and "No Silver Lining" on
BPA
BPA may refer to:
Organizations
*BPA Worldwide, an organization that audits circulation figures for mass media
*Banca Privada d'Andorra
*Bangladesh Police Academy
*Blue Panorama Airlines, ICAO code
*Bonneville Power Administration, a U.S. power ...
in common canned goods.
:• Advocated for introduction of Safe Cosmetics Act in Congress.
2009
:• Convinced
SC Johnson & Son to disclose all of the ingredients in their cleaning products on a :website and to remove phthalates from all their products.
:• Released "Disinfectant Overkill", a report on the health impacts linked to overuse of disinfectant products.
:• Co-sponsored the research convening "Framing a Research Agenda for Change: Advancing Worker Health and Safety for the Cosmetology and Nail Salon :Communities"
:• Joined
Earthjustice
Earthjustice (originally Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund) is a nonprofit public interest organization based in the United States dedicated to litigating environmental issues. Headquartered in San Francisco, it has 14 regional offices across the Un ...
in suing four leading cleaning product manufacturers for failing to follow a New York law that requires them to disclose the ingredients they use in their products
2008
:• Set an industry precedent for ingredient communication by influencing the Soap and Detergent Association and the
Consumer Specialty Products Association
A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or uses purchased goods, products, or services primarily for personal, social, family, household and similar needs, who is not directly related to entrepreneurial or business activities. T ...
to release a voluntary ingredient communication plan, paving the way for broad consumer right-to-know efforts.
:• Reached more than 14,000 women in their homes through the creation of the Green Cleaning Party Kit, a tool to educate and activate women on toxic chemicals in cleaning products.
:• Released "A Little Prettier" on companies' declining use of phthalates in personal care products and cosmetics.
2007 and prior
:• Co-founded the National Healthy Nail Salon Alliance, a network of some 35 organizations, scientific researchers, advocates and government agencies working to protect and improve the health and welfare of women working in the nation's nail salons.
:• Helped found and lead the national Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a national coalition of organizations working to protect the health of consumers and workers by requiring the health and beauty industry to phase out the use of chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and other health problems, and replace them with safer alternatives.
:• Helped convince OPI Inc., the largest global manufacturer of nail products for salons, to eliminate several major chemicals of concern from their nail polish products.
:• Co-founded Coming Clean Collaboration, a national network of more than 60 organizations working to change the practices of the chemical industry.
:• Participated in regional and national studies of women's breast milk to examine the presence of toxic
flame retardants and
PCBs.
:• Organized a successful grassroots campaign, with hundreds of women in Montana and Idaho, to convince
Albertsons Inc., one of the nation's leading :supermarket chains, to post visible warnings about mercury contamination in fish.
:• Helped found and lead the Montana Women Vote Project (MWV), which registers and educates new voters during election years.
:• Closed down or scaled back incinerators, labs and power plants, in conjunction with women at the grassroots level in Montana, Idaho and other states.
Current campaigns and programs
Legislative work
*Menstrual Products Right to Know Act
:Requires all manufacturers of tampons, pads, menstrual cups and period underwear to disclose ingredients.
*
Robin Danielson Feminine Hygiene Product Safety Act
:The bill directs the National Institute of Health to research the impact ingredients in menstrual and intimate care products (including products like tampons, pads, wipes, washes and douches) have on women's health.
*California AB 1989 - Opposition
:Aims to increase transparency in period care products, but continues to restrict vital ingredient information necessary to protect public health.
*Cosmetic Fragrance and Flavor Ingredient Right to Know Act of 2020 (SB312-Leyva)
:Requires manufacturers to disclose ingredients deemed toxic by authoritative bodies in flavor and fragrance ingredients to the California Safe Cosmetics Program.
*Citizen's Petition to the FDA: Ban Formaldehyde from Hair Straighteners
Filed a citizen's petition asking the FDA to review the safety of hair straighteners and health risks these products pose to salon workers.
Market campaigns
*Detox the Box
:Given the widespread use of menstrual care products, the unique route of exposure, and the lack of regulatory oversight, WVE is working to eliminate toxic chemicals from the $3 billion U.S. period and intimate care products market.
*Johnson & Johnson's Toxic Talc
:In May 2020, Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced it will stop selling its popular talc-based baby powder—which is linked to ovarian cancer in the US and Canada. However, J&J refuses to stop selling this dangerous product globally.
*Summer's Deceive
:Calling out harmful marketing and toxic chemicals found in Summer's Eve wipes, washes, powders and sprays.
*Brazilian Blowout
:Several leading brands of hair straightening products have been found to contain high levels of formaldehyde (up to 10%) even when labeled "formaldehyde-free." Formaldehyde gas can be severely irritating to the eyes, nose, and throat, and long term exposure to formaldehyde in the workplace has been linked to increased risk of cancer.
*Quit the Quats
Highlights health impacts from the use of antibacterial chemicals commonly found in disinfecting products like wipes, sprays, and all-purpose cleaners, and offers guidance for safer, certified and effective alternatives.
Action groups and workshops
*OSOF Workshops (Our Stories, Our Flow)
Virtual conversations about menstruation that center and de-stigmatizes the way we talk about, understand & experience safe, healthy periods.
*PAQ (People Against Quats)
A national action group of concerned people who want to help eliminate or reduce public exposure to quats in places like schools, gyms, apartment buildings, public work places and more.
Reports and fact sheets
WVE reports, fact sheets and resources
on health risks associated with chemicals of concern found in menstrual care product, cleaning products, professional salon products, safe cosmetics, as well as in-depth analysis of regulating bodies.
See also
*
Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition
The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition (SVTC) was formed in San Jose, California- as a research and advocacy group that promoted safe environmental practices in the high tech industry. The organization was founded in 1982 after leaks at manufacturi ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Official website
Environmental organizations based in Montana
Environmental organizations established in 1996
501(c)(3) organizations