On July 12th, CFF hosted an event called Pesticides in Paradise: How Hawaiian Communities Took on the Chemical Industry and Won. Food justice advocate and funder Anna Lappé opened with an overview of how she learned about this story and why she was drawn to get involved, and then Dr. Virginia Rauh presented her research on the toxic pesticide chlorpyrifos and its public health impacts, including related chemical exposure from indoor spraying here in New York City. From there we heard from community activist Malia Chun about her community's personal history with the pesticide industry, and how that narrative fits in to the larger history of Hawaii post-contact with Western colonialists. Anna Frederick, Executive Director of Hawaiʻi Alliance for Progressive Action (HAPA), then detailed the community organizing and statewide campaign that resulted in the country’s first ban on chlorpyrifos. Malia closed by discussing new nonprofits, especially on the most impacted island of Kaua'i, that have emerged as a result of this fight.
