WEN

Funding is required to continue this campaign, please donate now. Women's Environmental Network takes a holistic view of health and has campaigned on links between the environment and human health since it started in 1988. We have done ground-breaking work on environmental links to breast cancer, chemicals in cosmetics and toiletries, healthy flooring and the successful campaign to ban the pesticide, lindane. With our sister organisation, Women in Europe for a Common Future, we lobbied to make the new European chemicals legislation, REACH, as strong as possible. Our most recent work was a research project, funded by Defra, on gender and environmental chemicals.

Gender and Environmental Chemicals
a review by WEN of existing research into the effects of synthetic chemicals and women's involvement in environmental policy-making, debunks the myth that women's concern for the environment is 'natural'. See Health Resources for the review and report on focus groups, published in March 2007.

Women Taking Action for a Healthier Planet
a three year project, funded by The Community Fund (national lottery) to empower local groups and individuals to take action on links between women, the environment and health. Activities include:

Think Before You Pink
How much do ‘pink ribbon products’ really help prevent breast cancer?

Scottish Toxic Tour - 3 November 2004
Join Scottish WEN on the bus for a Toxic Tour of the Scottish countryside, in association with the Scottish TUC and the University of Stirling Occupational and Environmental Health Research Group . Taking in Grangemouth, Fauldhouse, Uphall and Addiewell with talks from Clydebank Asbestos Group, FOE Scotland, local campaigners and activists. Flier (462k pdf) Registration form (343k pdf)

Ending the cosmetics cover-up
Most modern cosmetics and toiletries are mixtures of synthetic chemicals, some of which are harmful to human health and the environment. This campaign empowers people, through our briefings, workshops and actions what chemicals to watch out for and how to lobby for safer alternatives.

Putting Breast Cancer on the Map
Building on our previous lottery-funded project, women can map their own exposure to breast cancer and possible contributory factors, to add to the body of knowledge about how the disease impacts on our lives.

Stopping breast cancer before it starts
called for a national strategy for the primary prevention of breast cancer and the launch of an independent Working Group on Primary Prevention of the disease.

Detecting the hidden hazards
30,000 synthetic chemicals are in everyday use in our homes, workplaces and public spaces. Yet few have been adequately tested for their impact on human and environmental heath. Find out what lurks in everyday products, what's behind the label and what you can do about it.

Toxic Tours & Legal tools
In December 2003 WEN and the Environmental Law Foundation held a seminar on how communities can use the law to achieve environmental justice and launched a joint briefing, Legal tools for environmental activists: a brief guide to international treaties Click here for briefing (239k pdf), or click here (191k Word doc) to order printed copies.

World Summit on Sustainable Development
The Earth Summit may not have resulted in much concrete progress on environmental issues but WEN did its bit to make sure women's voices were heard. In the months leading up to the Summit WEN collected women's Visions for a Healthier Planet. It published them in a pocket-sized booklet (241k pdf) and gave copies to Prime Minister, Tony Blair and other members of the UK delegation.

Healthy Flooring Network
WEN is a founder member of the Healthy Flooring Network, an alliance of organisations and individuals concerned about health, asthma and allergy. HFN has published a Guide to Healthy Flooring and information on useful contacts and alternative flooring suppliers, and two scientific reports on links between fitted carpets, PVC (vinyl) flooring and health.

Ban Lindane Campaign
Thanks to continuing pressure from the campaign, the pesticide Lindane will be phased out for agricultural and horticultural use throughout the European Union. But it's still used as a pesticide in the South, especially on cocoa crops. This means that the chocolate we eat may be contaminated with Lindane. Lindane is linked with serious health problems, including breast cancer and it may also disrupt the endocrine (hormonal) system. It is hazardous to both the people who use it and those exposed to it in their environment and in their food. Click here for Lindane and Chocolate leaflet (375k pdf).