Our 2021 Annual Report: Environment, health, science & impact

An update from the front lines of climate change and environmental health

What a time of change and growth!

We are pleased to share Environmental Health Sciences' 2021 Annual Report, highlighting the many activities we undertook last year that set EHS up for a strong 2022.


Download our annual report here:

EHS-2021-Annual-Report.pdf

Environmental impact

Agriculture and environmental health

2021 was a year of excitement and challenge for our small nonprofit.

  1. We launched EHN en Español,
  2. Doubled down on our commitment to the groundbreaking early career science program Agents of Change, and
  3. Saw significant gains on both the toxics and climate fronts.

And we watched readers – like you! – get engaged in ways that continually surprised us.

Our work continues

PFAS in cosmetics

In just the first three months this year EHS staff has been a hive of activity:

  • Partnered with wellness community Mamavation.com to investigate PFAS contamination in sports bras, cosmetics and other products.
  • Driven a global campaign around groundbreaking BPA limits in Europe – and why the same scientific standards should be applied in the U.S.
  • Published 10 Agents of Change essays & podcasts exploring everything from new pathways into science to workplace chemical exposures.

Take a look at the work EHS did last year and be proud that you, as a reader, are moving it forward.

We certainly are grateful to you!

PS: Just today we published a look at impacts one year after publishing "Fractured," our groundbreaking investigation into spillover pollution from fracking fields in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Check it out!

Banner photo art by David Ryder for EHN.org

Wetlands with green trees, fields and cloud dotted sky.

The next deluge may go differently

Explore how Wisconsin Wetlands Funding aids in restoring ecosystems and managing floodwaters effectively across the region.
Scene of destructive aftermath of Florida hurricane
Credit: Photo by David Sterphone)/Florida National Guard https://www.flickr.com/photos/thenationalguard/ Creative Commons https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

The hidden devastation of hurricanes

Their health effects extend far beyond official death tolls.
shallow focus of person holding a narrow mirror reflecting their eye.

The last frontier of empathy: why we still struggle to see ourselves as animals

Champions of exceptionalism say humans hold a unique moral status. Yet there’s only one species recklessly destroying the planet it needs to survive.

A boat with green fishing nets alongside a dock.

Opinion: How a Texas shrimper stalled Exxon’s $10bn plastics plant

Diane Wilson recognized Exxon’s playbook – and showed how local people can take on even the most entrenched industries.

A palm with fingers splayed planted in the middle of a large green leaf.

Two ways of knowing: How merging science and Indigenous wisdom fuels new discoveries

What becomes possible when we combine the strengths of western science and Indigenous knowledge systems as we navigate humanity’s biggest challenges?

A woman in a beanie cap lays on leaves and grass looking at the sky on a cloudy day.

Is ‘imagination activism’ the antidote to climate doom we’ve been looking for?

A new exhibition in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, asks, what if the most radical climate tool isn't technology, but the ability to dream?
prticipants at the entrance to COP 30 pavilion
Credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/isostandards/ Creative Commons: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

Cop30 draft text omits mention of fossil fuel phase-out roadmap

Summit leadership releases new text despite 29 nations threatening to block progress without commitment.

From our Newsroom
Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro speaks with the state flag and American flag behind him.

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

silhouette of people holding hands by a lake at sunset

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

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