Rachel Carson Homestead Association

World Environment Day 2010: The Rachel Carson Legacy Challenge to be Used to Encourage Sustainable Action

The Rachel Carson Legacy Challenge will be front and center during the 2010 U.N. World Environment Day for North America, hosted in Pittsburgh. Introduced in 2007 - the centenary of author and scientist Rachel Carson’s birth, the Challenge asks corporations, schools and institutions, organizations government agencies and individuals to commit to permanent and measurable changes that will reduce their ecological footprint.
Each “challenge” should encompass one of Carson’s environmental ethics:
Live in harmony with nature
Preserve and learn from natural places
Minimize the effect of man-made chemicals on the natural systems of the world
Consider the implications of human actions of the global web of life.
“The eyes of the world are once again on Pittsburgh and our hosting the World Environment Day celebration for North America provides a tremendous opportunity to engage more people in finding ways for long-term and short-term answers to today’s problems of pollution, waste, resource consumption and the effects these have on biodiversity,” said RCHA Executive Director, Dr. Patricia DeMarco.
The results of the original Rachel Carson Legacy Challenge can be viewed on our Web site. The most encouraging part of the report, which was compiled under the guidance of Dr. Robert Sroufe by Duquesne University Sustainability Fellows, MBA Program, shows that committing to one change or new behavior nearly always leads to new ways of thinking and more sustainable initiatives.
As one local government representative stated, “It takes time to bring about a cultural change, but once one department makes progress, it encourages others to do even better.” Their efforts also become a model that other institutions can learn from.
Contact the RCHA to learn more about how to take the Rachel Carson Legacy Challenge at info@rachelcarsonhomestead.org