Interfaith Perspectives on Environmental Health
Children and the Environment: A Joint Reflection cont.

• Work with existing community groups who are environmentally concerned. Map your community's known or potential hazards (e.g. dump sites, incinerators, superfund sites, major industry). Check the Toxic Release Inventory (TRA) data available to the public. Work with local industry and government to reduce emissions, clean up sites, etc.
• Religious educators can communicate the ethical and moral dimensions of this issue from the perspective of Catholic and Jewish social teaching.
• Advocate the development of a national warning system for environmental health risks. While the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has monitored lead levels in human blood over the years, to good effect, it does not monitor for other dangerous pollutants.

Selected Resources for Information on Children's Environmental Health

Federal Agency Websites

Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

Environmental Protection Agency, Children's Health Protection

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

Non-Governmental Organizations

Alliance to End Childhood Lead Poisoning

American Academy of Pediatrics

American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Children's Environmental Health Network

Physicians for Social Responsibility

U.S. Catholic Conference Office of Domestic Social Development

Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism

National Religious Partnership for the Environment

Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life