Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode

Endocrine disruptors are chemical compounds that interfere with our hormones. For years, it was seen as a fringe theory. Today, it’s embraced by The Endocrine Society and Endocrinologists worldwide. A new study by our guest today shows that chemical exposure to young brains impacts their hormones, which can result in early-onset puberty.  In his latest episode, Ken is joined by Dr. Natalie Shaw, a pediatric endocrinologist and clinical investigator, to discuss her team’s findings and the dangers of early-onset puberty. EWG has been following this topic for quite some time. Join us as we jump back to 2010 when Ken interviews Dr. Louise Greenspan and Dr. Juliana Deardorf about their book, The New Puberty. We’ll explore the unfolding of this story over the past decade, which leaves us to wonder - what are we doing to our girls, and why?Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below: Identification of Environmental Compounds That May Trigger Early Female Puberty by Activating Human GnRHR and KISS1R (Endocrinology, Volume 165, Issue 10, October 2024, bqae103) The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Hormones And Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals What You Need To Know (The Endocrine Society) Exposure and potential risks of thirteen endocrine- disrupting chemicals in pharmaceuticals and personal care products for breastfed infants in China (Environment International) Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals: Threats To Human Health Pesticides, Plastics, Forever Chemicals, And Beyond (The Endocrine Society) The New Puberty, How to Navigate Early Development in Today's Girls (Louise Greenspan, M.D., Julianna Deardorff, Ph.D.)Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week. @kencookspodcast www.ewg.org @environmentalworkinggroup

People come to environmental work in many different ways. Our first guest today, Kari Rhinehart, came to environmentalism after experiencing a parent’s worst nightmare, the loss of a child, due to a rare brain tumor. When other children in her community of Franklin, IN started getting sick, parents in the community began asking questions and putting data on a map. What they found shocked them. Contaminated drinking water.Our second guest, Kari’s attorney, Chris Nidel, is a former chemical engineer turned environmental lawyer. People like Kari and her daughter, Emma Grace, are why Chris does the work that he does (and we wish there were more people like him!) Both Kari and Chris are incredible examples of how one person can have an enormous impact and affect change.Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below: If It Was Your ChildNidel & Nace, P.L.L.C.Emma Grace Creative Arts ScholarshipTCE Interactive Map (EWG) EWG Tap Water DatabaseTap water of more than 19 million Americans polluted by ‘Civil Action’ carcinogen that EPA is poised to ban (EWG) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Health Consultation (EPA) What is Vapor Intrusion? (EPA) Search for Superfund Sites Where You Live (EPA) Health Consultation and Analysis, Franklin, IN (ATSDR, HHS, CDC)Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week. @kencookspodcast www.ewg.org @environmentalworkinggroup 

First things first, the onus shouldn’t be on us to find food options without chemicals and additives. If it’s in a store, it should be safe to eat. Right? Unfortunately, that’s not the world we live in. In today’s episode, Ken is joined by noted nutritionist Courtney Swan. Courtney is on a mission to empower people to understand what healthy eating is and how to go about it within our broken food system. She is also on a mission to empower people to make their own food and dispel the myth that healthy doesn’t taste good. Ken and Courtney encourage people to trust their gut (in multiple ways) when making food choices and they believe everyone deserves access to healthy and affordable food. Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below: RealfoodologyCourtney’s InstagramEWG's Food ScoresEWG, “Monsanto Emails: ‘Let’s Beat the S*** Out of’ Moms Worried About Cancer-Linked Weedkiller”Seed Oil ScoutUnited States District Court, Northern District of California, Case 3:16-md-02741-VC Document 246-2New York Times, "A Florida Professor Works with the Biotech Industry"New York Times, "Food Industry Enlisted Academics in G.M.O. Lobbying War, Emails Show"Oxfam, "These 10 companies make a lot of the food we buy. Here’s how we made them better."Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week. @kencookspodcast www.ewg.org @environmentalworkinggroup 

Astounding advancements have been made in clean energy technology, and rooftop and community solar initiatives have been shown to drive consumer costs down and help us reach carbon emission reduction goals. So why are solar projects hitting a regulatory brick wall? (hint: it’s about corporate greed and value for monopoly utility shareholders). In today’s episode, we’re joined by the co-director of the Institute for Local Self Reliance, John Farrell, to unravel the ins and outs of why rooftop and community solar and other clean energy advancements are being stoned-walled, and what we can do about it. Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below:Institute for Local Self-RelianceLocal Energy Rules PodcastEWG's guide to solar energyFight to save rooftop solar in California heads to state Supreme Court (EWG)Upcharge: Hidden Costs of Electric Utility Monopoly Power (ILSR)What the Monopoly Utility Model Really Costs Us (ILSR)The Free Delivery Farce in SolarKIUC 2023 Annual ReportPG&E to pay $55 million for two massive California wildfires (PBS News)Project 2025's "Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise" (The Heritage Foundation, made public by NPR)Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup

A cleaner, greener, and brighter future is within our reach. But often the path we have to walk is littered with discriminatory hurdles put up by the male-dominated financial sector. From subsidies that suppress organic farming to everyday biases preventing the funding of new startups and innovative ideas from women and people of color, Wall Street often stands in the way of progress. No one can speak to this better than our guest today, Robyn O’Brien. Robyn is a bestselling author, speaker, entrepreneur and investor. After earning her MBA from Rice University, Robyn went on to work as an equity analyst on Wall Street where she covered the food and tech industry. After falling down the convoluted rabbit hole of contaminated food and personal care products, she now sits at the intersection of environmentalism, equality and finance.Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below: Robyn's websiteTed X - "Real Food Evangelism"Ted X - “Patriotism on a Plate”Seeding Innovation: The Path to Profit and Purpose in the 21st CenturyThe Unhealthy Truth: One Mother's Shocking Investigation into the Dangers of America's Food Supply-- and What Every Family Can Do to Protect ItselfDetox Development -The World BankLifting financial performance by investing in women, Long-term capitalism at BlackRock (Nov. 2023)Reforming federal cosmetics law: What is the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act? (EWG)EWG welcomes cosmetics law reforms in end-of-year spending billMontCalmHR5050Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup

Many people find EWG while seeking information  about pesticides. In today’s episode Ken is joined by our in-house Senior Toxicologist, Dr. Alexis Temkin whose research establishes safety guidelines to help people (including children) minimize their exposure to toxic crop chemicals. In the second half of today’s episode, Ken is joined by renowned pediatrician Dr. Phillip Landrigan whose decades of research and advocacy  is integral for understanding the effects of pesticides on children. We see this episode as Pesticides 101, to help give our audience agency over how they (and their families) are exposed to pesticides. Our government isn’t doing enough to protect us from harmful chemical  residues often found in healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. Until that changes, we’re grateful for the work of Dr. Temkin and Dr. Landrigan which has helped  people, including parents and caregivers, better understand how they can take steps to reduce their exposure to pesticides while eating plenty of healthy fruits and veggies. Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below:EWG’s 2024 Dirty Dozen EWG’s 2024 Clean 15EWG’s Dirty Dozen Guide to Food Chemicals: The top 12 to avoidEWG’s YouTubeAlexis Temkin, Ph.D. EPA warns farmworkers about risks of Dacthal60 Minutes (CBS; 2/26/1989)National Research Council (US) Committee on Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and ChildrenFood Quality Protection Act SigningSafe Drinking Water Act SigningChildren and Environmental Toxins: What Everyone Needs to Know®Project 2025's "Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise (contributed by NPR)Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup

Oil companies have known about their enormous and “catastrophic” contribution to climate change since the 1950s. They lied about it for as long as they could and are now lying about their newfound commitment to solving the problem they created. Who will hold them accountable?  Melissa “Missy” Sims, a lawyer from Illinois, is currently representing 52 Puerto Rican municipalities against Big Oil for hurricane-related damages caused by the climate crisis. Richard Wiles is the president of the Center for Climate Integrity, which helps state and local elected leaders, including state attorneys generals hold Big Oil companies accountable for climate damages through litigation. In today’s episode, Ken, Missy and Richard talk about how they got to the front lines of protecting our planet by working together on a mission to sue Big Oil and what their hope for the future looks like.Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below:She’s on a Mission From: God Suing Big Oil Companies for DamagesCenter for Climate Integrity The Global Climate Science Communications Action Plan “The Victory Memo”T.I.N.A. Group Sceanarios 1998Exxon’s 1978 report “The Greenhouse Effect”Exxon’s 1979 report “Controlling Atmospheric CO2”Exxon's 2019 Corporate Strategic Planning memorandumShell’s 2020 “Let’s Talk Energy Transition” emails and deckHouse Oversight documents reveal Big Oil’s “greenwashing” climate claims to hide investments in fossil fuelsKen Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup

Local businesses and local farms are being lost in this era of monopolizing America’s food system, but the food industry didn’t become corrupt overnight. In today’s episode, Ken is joined by Austin Frerick, expert on agricultural and antitrust policy. His debut book, “Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America’s Food Industry” profiles a series of powerful magnates to illustrate the concentration of power in the food system. Policy language used effectively by the food industry is designed to wall people off, Austin’s book let’s people in.During the 2020 presidential campaign, Austin advised candidates Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and Pete Buttigieg on agricultural policy before ultimately serving as Co-Chair of the Biden campaign’s Agriculture Antitrust Policy Committee. He now works at Yale University, collaborating on research related to competition policy and antitrust enforcement.Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below:“Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America's Food Industry”EWG's Meat And Dairy Product Labels DecoderEWG’s quick tips for reducing your diet's climate footprintEWG’s Meat Eater’s Guide to Climate & HealthKen Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup

In a recent New Yorker article, investigative reporter Sharon Lerner writes about former 3M scientist Kris Hansen who conducted a study in the 90s where she found PFAs forever chemicals in the general public's blood. 3M executives told her PFAS chemicals weren't harmful, she believed them. Decades later she would learn the truth about the serious risks of  PFAS exposure, and why she decided to speak out against the company she worked at for decades.  We are aware of the harmful effects of PFAs because of Professor Philippe Grandjean, a Danish Toxicologist. In the first part of today’s episode, Ken is joined by Sharon Lerner and talks about the human experience 3m scientist Kris Hansen has gone through since finding out her employer lied to her and the general public for decades. Sharon Lerner refers to Professor Philippe Grandjean’s groundbreaking work in her article and in the second part of today’s episode, Ken is joined by Professor Grandjean to speak about one of his own articles that explores the vested interest in keeping facts about chemical exposure a secret from the public.Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below:How 3M Discovered, Then Concealed, the Dangers of Forever Chemicals (The New Yorker)Sharon Lerner's work at ProPublicaIs Pollution Value-Maximizing? The Dupont Case (National Bureau Of Economic Research)Paracelsus Revisited: The Dose Concept in a Complex WorldEWG’s PFAS resourcesLead: Celebrate its ban, but don't cross it off your list (EWG)Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup

Climate change, air pollution, jobs! These are buzzwords that have helped the nuclear energy industry stay in power. In today’s episode, Ken is joined by author and environmental engineering professor, Mark Jacobson and former Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and author, Greg Jaczko to discuss why we continue to waste so much money in nuclear power, what the new clean energy alternatives are and why we are still using both.Want a deeper dive on today’s episode? Check out the links below:Mark Jacobson’s Book, No Miracles NeededGreg Jaczko’s Book, Confessions of a Rogue Nuclear RegulatorEWG’s Green Energy GuideThe Economic Viability of Nuclear Power Is Only Going DownWhy Small Modular Nuclear Reactors Won’t Help Counter the Climate CrisisKen Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.@kencookspodcastwww.ewg.org@environmentalworkinggroup