A member of the Aging Abundantly Community reminded me this morning about Rachel Carson and the enormous impact she had on the world’s perspective on the environment. Just one woman, with drive and dedication, left her mark. Just one person can make a difference.
The Story of How One Woman Took on the Chemical Industry
Rachel Carson
(May 27, 1907 – April 14, 1964)
“Rachel Carson was a marine biologist, author and conservationist responsible for launching the global environmentalist movement.
Her first book, “The Sea Around Us” won the National Book Award in 1951, her trilogy on the oceans was an in-depth exploration of sea life from the seashore to the deepest depths.
Late in the 1950’s Carson committed herself to writing about environmental conservation– determined to stop the use of harmful pesticides. Her book “Silent Spring” sparked major opposition from chemical companies, but Carson’s truth could not be stopped. “Silent Spring” spurred major change in American pesticide policy, including the ban of DDT and other pesticides.
Rachel Carson’s work led to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
She was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her groundbreaking research and writing.
One person can make a change.” Thanks to Cup of Jane for this annotation.
“Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring was first published in three serialized excerpts in the New Yorker in June of 1962. The book appeared in September of that year and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. Carson’s passionate concern for the future of our planet reverberated powerfully throughout the world, and her eloquent book was instrumental in launching the environmental movement. It is without question one of the landmark books of the twentieth century.”
Rachel Carson’s words speak to the heart of what mattered most to her. Here are a few:
“The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction.” ~ Rachel Carson
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature — the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.”
― Rachel Carson, Silent Spring
“Why should we tolerate a diet of weak poisons, a home in insipid surroundings, a circle of acquaintances who are not quite our enemies, the noise of motors with just enough relief to prevent insanity? Who would want to live in a world which is just not quite fatal?” ~ Rachel Carson, Silent Spring
“A child’s world is fresh and new and beautiful, full or wonder and excitement. It is our misfortune that for most of us that clear-eyed vision, that true instinct for what is beautiful and awe-inspiring, is dimmed and even lost before we reach adulthood. If I had influence with the good fairy who is supposed to preside over the christening of all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life, as an unfailing antidote against the boredom and disenchantment of later year…the alienation from the sources of our strength.” ~ Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder
Happy Earth Day!
May the earth restore your soul as is does mine.
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