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P h y s i c i a n s f o r s o c i a l r e s P o n s i b i l i t y  

PSR is the U.S. afliate o 

International Physicians or 

the Prevention o Nuclear War,

recipient o the 1985 Nobel 

Prize or Peace.

inside this issue

PSR RePoRtS

 V i s i t P s R o n t h e w e b a t w w w . P s R . o R g

  Vol. 31 no. 1Winter/sPring 2009

2 Clean Energy Victorious

Over Nuclear Energy

3 Student PSR to Hold

April Conerence

 

3 PSR Lobby Day in

Washington, D.C.,

on April 2

from theexecutiVe director

GivingOuAIt is my privilege and honor to

be serving as PSR’s executivedirector. We are in the midst o an amazing time, with enormouspossibilities beore us. The new leadership in our country hascreated hope and promise ora better world, and the chanceor real progress toward a worldree o nuclear weapons and lessthreatened by global warming.

I was ortunate enough to beable to attend President Obama’sinauguration. It was a powerulexperience: to be surrounded by almost 2 million people rom allover the country, ull o open-heartedness, generosity andkindness or one another as we

 waited in long lines and dealt

New U.S. leadership presents anunparalleled opportunity to

make progress toward a world ree o nuclear weapons. President Obamasaid he would:

Set a new direction in U.S. nuclear weapons policy and show the worldthat America believes in its existing 

commitment under the NuclearNon-Prolieration Treaty to work to ultimately eliminate all nuclear

 weapons.

 With decades o experience advo-cating or nuclear disarmament andcommunicating the threats to humanlie and health that nuclear weaponsand materials pose, PSR is gearing up to take advantage o this window o opportunity. PSR is working withchapters and members nationwideto turn this vision o a world ree o nuclear weapons into reality.

The impending expiration o theStrategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), the 2010 Non-Proli-eration Treaty review conerence,and concerns about the heightenedtension between the United Statesand Iran all increase the urgency o PSR’s work. Last month PSR held aorum in Washington, D.C., called“Steps to Zero.” The event, held atthe Carnegie Endowment or Inter-national Peace, attracted more than100 policy advisors and arms controlexperts to discuss steps towards zeronuclear weapons, including: ratica-tion o the Comprehensive Test BanTreaty (CTBT), negotiations with

Russia toward treaties that reduceboth nations’ arsenals and veriy thesecuts, and measures to strengthen thenonprolieration regime, including discussion o a treaty to end the pro-duction o nuclear weapon material.

 We must keep in mind that realchange on these issues will not takeplace without support rom Congress.To gain public and congressionalsupport, PSR needs to change theterms o the debate so that taking 

“Steps to Zero” is perceived as aserious, urgent public health matter.

To help us reach our goal, PSR haslaunched new eforts and developednew resources:

PSR has a new PowerPoint pre-sentation, designed or healthproessional audiences, oncurrent nuclear weapons issues:“Steps to Zero: A Grand RoundsPresentation.” A version o thepresentation or the general public

 will be available soon. To sched-ule a presentation, or or more

StepstoZeoPSR Builds Support or Eliminating Nuclear Weapons

 would increase global warming and add to the extensive morbid-ity and mortality caused by coalplant pollution. Coupled with the

health warning that “there is nosuch thing as clean coal,” CodeBlack promotes the health benetso an economy based on non-ossiluel energy and centered on en-ergy conservation, eciency andrenewables.

2. ConfontingToxics. By prepar-ing health proessionals to speak about the chemical trespass o tox-ic substances into our bodies, weare ostering the development o new and credible health messen-gers, who call or chemical policy reorm in their states and in theederal Toxic Substances Control

 Act. Reorming chemical manage-ment laws is an efective way toreduce exposure to the hazardous

TheCatoEnvionentaActivis

PSR’s environmental health cam-paigns hold the potential to lower

signicantly the public health risksassociated with global warming andexposure to toxic chemicals and airpollutants. We are currently operating three major campaigns:

1. CodeBack:Coa’sAssauton Aeica’sHeath. Through thiscampaign, PSR is working to deeatthe permitting o more than 100coal plants proposed in the U.S.I built, these plants would emithuge quantities o CO2 and otherdangerous air pollutants into theatmosphere. PSR adds the uniqueand knowledgeable voices o healthproessionals to the debates aboutthese plants, providing scienticdetail on how coal combustion

Continued on page

Continued on page

Continued on page

 Jill Parillo (center)moderates Step to Zero panel

 eaturing Dr. Edward Ift,School o Foreign Serviceat Georgetown University;

 Jenier Mackby, Center or Strategic and InternationalStudies; Sharon Squassoni,Carnegie Endowment or International Peace; and Dr. Jefrey G. Lewis, New

 America Foundation.

PSR Executive Director Peter Wilkand Senator Jef Merkley (D-OR) at a

 pre-Inauguration Breakast 

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Code Black Program Manager Barb Gottliebaddresses members o the media in SouthCarolina.

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Psr rePorts Winter/sPring 2009

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chemicals that are so pervasive inproducts we use in our homes and

 workplaces, on our bodies and inour ood. Among the chemicals

 we target: endocrine disruptorssuch as bisphenol A (ound inood containers) and persistentbioaccumulative toxins, those sub-stances such as mercury that build

up over time in organisms and inthe ood chain.

3. The“PediaticEnvionentaHeathTookit”(PEHT)DisseinationPoject.ThePEHT, developed by PSR’s SanFrancisco and Boston chapters, isa tool to help pediatric providersand health educators incorpo-rate age-appropriate interventionguidance during well-child visits,identiying potential environmen-tal hazards and providing inter-

 ventions to help avoid exposures.

 All three campaigns are educating people and engaging them in actionsthat will make a diference. Opportunitiesor PSR members to “prevent what wecannot cure” range rom the simpleto the sophisticated. PSR provides re-sources on our website or concernedcitizens and health proessionals.New oferings available soon will in-clude reports on coal pollution andhuman health, the alternatives to os-

sil uel energy sources, and the resultso a biomonitoring project conductedon health proessionals. We’re alsodeveloping several new slideshows.

These resources, like all o the ma-terials that PSR produces, are basedon reputable scientic ndings, care-ully documented and presented inobjective terms. These high standardsenable PSR to conduct science-basedadvocacy that carries the weight andauthority o our expert sources.

 Ater you have educated yoursel, we invite you to spread the word. Allour environmental campaigns ofer

slideshows, some intended or thegeneral public and others or themedical, nursing or public healthcommunity. Health proessionals canuse the slideshows or Grand Rounds;in making presentations beore medi-cal, nursing and public health asso-ciations or societies and to boards o health; and in asking medical, nurs-ing or public health organizations topass resolutions on specic policies.

These slideshows will be available soonor download rom our website.The next important step you can

take, as a health proessional or as aconcerned citizen, is to communicateto decision makers your concernsabout environmental issues. One way to do that is to participate in PSR’selectronic activist listserv. You’ll ndthat opportunity on the homepage o our website (www.psr.org) in the boxmarked “Take action.” You can alsouse PSR’s prepared talking pointsand petitions to help colleagues orslideshow audience members writeletters to policy makers, to healthocials or to the editor o your localnewspaper.

I you are a health proessional, you can incorporate environmentalhealth preventative education into

 your clinical practice and institu-tionalize it as standard o care. ThePEHT, endorsed by the American

 Academy o Pediatrics, provides theclinical tools to make this addition to

 your practice seamless. At the most sophisticated level o 

engagement, some o PSR’s membersare scientic researchers. We callupon those members to apply theirexpertise and proessional standing to our work by providing expert testi-mony on issues relating to energy andto toxics, whether in regulatory hear-ings, court cases or testimony beorelegislative bodies.

 Whichever action you choose, it will be one step more in the critically important efort to increase human

 well-being and decrease environ-mental contamination and globalclimate instability.

P

SR is leading a national campaignto block subsidies or new nu-

clear reactors and oppose the repro-cessing o nuclear waste. As the U.S.seeks real solutions to climate change,the nuclear industry continues to try to redene itsel as “clean” and grab alarge chunk o U.S. taxpayer dollars.PSR’s sae energy program shines aharsh light on the true dangers o nuclear power, as well as its exorbi-tant costs and unresolved radioactive

 waste issue.In February, PSR and its allies

scored a major victory when a provi-sion was removed rom the economicstimulus bill that would have autho-

rized $50 billion in loan guarantees,

a signicant portion o which wouldhave subsidized the construction o new nuclear reactors. The provi-sion was added to the Senate versiono the bill at the request o Sen. BobBennett (R-UT) and likely wouldhave stayed, were it not or the efortso PSR and other groups that drew attention to the risk these loan guar-antees would pose or the Americanpeople. Rather than creating jobs,as the provisions in the stimulusbill were intended to do, the loanguarantees would have constituted abailout o the nuclear industry. PSRdrove home the message that thereare huge environmental liabilities and

nancial risks associated with nuclear

SafeEnegyCaisVictoyOveNuceaEnegy 

development and that these risks would have been borne by the U.S.taxpayers. And new nuclear reactors

 would mean more radioactive wastepiling up, with no plan or its long-term management.

Our success in striking nuclearenergy subsidies rom the stimu-lus package should help the U.S.ocus on the right kinds o energy development. “We need to move

ENVIrONmENTAlACTIVISm

Continued from page 1

at right: Michele Boyd,PSR’s sae energy director, leads

a workshop on alternatives tonuclear energy.

 

Continued on page

 Association leaders gather at PSR to develop recommendations or institutionalizing environment and health into clinical practice and health proessional education. Standing: Kristin Stoime-nof, Farm Worker Health Inc; Jody Robyler, National Association o Pediatric Nurse Practitioners;

 Nsedu Obot Witherspoon, Children’s Environmental Health Network; Paula Davis, Association o Occupational and Environmental Clinics; Jerry Paulson, Pediatric Environmental Health SpecialtyUnit, Mid-Atlantic Center or Children’s Health; Jean Fletcher, Maryland Chesapeake Chapter,

 National Association o Pediatric Nurse Practitioners; Gillian Silver, American Schools o PublicHealth; Leyla McCurdy, National Environmental Education Foundation; Nancy Hughes, Ameri-can Nurses Association; Amanda Raziano, American Public Health Association. Sitting: PSRStaf: Coral Ellis; Marybeth Palmigiano; Kristen Welker-Hood, E & H program director. PSR

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Psr rePorts   Vol. 31, no. 1

Please consider… includingPsr in your Will

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inVest yourself from the President

Irst met Peter Wilk more than twodecades ago when I was a medi-

cal school student at the University o Wisconsin and Peter was already a leading physician activist in thenuclear nonprolieration movement.It was clear to me then, as it is today,that he is one o the most dedicatedand knowledgeable physicians in thecountry working on this and otherissues o global importance. He hasearned a reputation over the years asa consummate diplomat, a politically astute leader and an efective collabo-rator who knows how to accomplishchange through consensus.

 As a long-time chapter presidentin Maine and a national board mem-ber or 18 years, including two termsas president, as well as someone whohas had held leadership positions

 with IPPNW, Peter has a unique com-bination o experience and skills thatmakes him the ideal choice to leadPSR. PSR/Maine boasts one o themost robust and active chapters, duein large part to Peter’s leadership.Committed to increasing physicianinvolvement in environment andsecurity issues, Peter played a major

part in organizing several statewideconerences to reach out to andengage physicians.

 As a member o PSR’s nationalboard, he played a key role in de-

 veloping the organization’s strategicplan in 2007, and he is committedto strengthening PSR by building itsmembership and enhancing its chap-ter network. As the speaker o theInternational Council o IPPNW, he

 was responsible or guiding complexdeliberations and bringing togetherdiverse groups o physicians romacross the world toward a common

purpose. For all o these reasons, I am very pleased to welcome Peter to hisnew role as PSR executive director.

I want to take this opportunity, onbehal o the board, to express my deep gratitude to Mike McCally orhis outstanding leadership as PSR’sexecutive director or the past two

 years. Mike retired in February, cap-ping an extraordinary 30-year in-

 volvement with PSR, having played akey role in nearly every aspect o itsgrowth and success. During his ten-ure as executive director, Mike guidedthe implementation o PSR’s strategicplan, including encouraging strongercollaboration between chapters andPSR/National; launched cutting-edge programs in climate change andenergy; and helped to deeat propos-als to expand our country’s nuclear

 weapons complex. His many riendson the board and throughout the PSRnetwork wish him well as he settlesin New Mexico or his well-earnedretirement. We are very happy to notethat he will continue to be involvedthrough PSR/New Mexico.

 As PSR completes this transition,I would like to extend a special invi-tation to all o you to participate inPSR’s work by contributing your timeand talents to advancing our shared

mission. Whether it’s working to pre- vent the U.S. rom ever conducting nuclear test explosions again, testiy-ing about the negative health impactso coal-red power plants or urging greater regulation o chemicals in ourenvironment, PSR needs you to beinvolved. Our website, psr.org, ande-alert system provide up-to-date in-ormation on our campaigns and ac-tivities and the many ways that you cancontribute your voice to our eforts.

Thank you or your condence inour mission.

 

Evan Kanter, M.D., Ph.D.

PeteWik,m.D.,AssuesleadeshipofPSr

toward clean, renewable energy sources that will also help mitigateglobal warming, and it appears thatCongress and President Obama

 will provide that leadership,” statedPeter Wilk, PSR’s new executivedirector.

The efort to clean up the stimulusbill was the result o a strong collaboration among dozens o advocacy groups, but it was just one

 win in what is sure to be a long efort.This spring, as the industry continuesto push its case or nuclear energy,PSR will continue its campaign toeducate decision makers at every level, as well as the public, that saer,healthier alternatives should bepursued.

SAfEENErGy 

Continued from page

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Peter Wilk, M.D.

GIVINGOurAll

Continued from page 1

 with all the other logistical challengeso being in such a huge crowd.Then we ell totally silent together asObama took the oath o oce andall o us there, and millions o view-ers throughout the world, quietly shared our positive aspirations or theuture. To witness this monumentalevent, just as I was preparing to takeon the leadership o PSR, was bothinspiring and exciting.

I have greatly valued working withmany o you, having served since 1991on PSR/National’s board o directors,including two terms as national pres-ident, and having led the Maine PSRchapter or almost three decades. Iknow PSR members are a thoughtul,determined lot, with a unique medi-cal perspective and a variety o skills

that will serve us well as we mobilizeto take action in this new era.

 Ater a long period o simply striving to prevent the worst abusesto our environment and the mostdangerous nuclear weapons poli-cies, we nally can shit to a moreproactive stance. The country is ready or change. It’s time or everyone whocares about the uture o our ragileplanet to step up and help take ad-

 vantage o the unique opportunitiesthat are now within our reach.

In anticipation o the changes in Washington, we have spent several

months preparing to press the new administration and Congress oressential changes in national policy regarding nuclear weapons, cli-mate change, sae energy and toxicpollution — issues that PSR has been

 working on or decades. Now, we areputting those plans into action.

 Already, there are hopeul signs.During his campaign, PresidentObama pledged to “set a new direc-tion in U.S. nuclear weapons policy and show the world that America

believes in its existing commitmentunder the Nuclear Non-ProlierationTreaty to work to ultimately eliminateall nuclear weapons.” In February,Secretary o State Hillary Clinton re-iterated some o these same messagesin her conrmation hearing.

 And just six days ater taking o-ce, the new president broughtleaders o national environmentalorganizations — including our ownoutgoing executive director, MichaelMcCally— together with senior ad-ministration ocials and industry representatives, to the White Houseto witness his signing o a directivecommitting the administration toeforts to substantially reduce harm-ul automobile emissions. As nationsaround the world prepare or the nextround o climate change treaty nego-tiations in Copenhagen in December

2009, much more U.S. leadershipmust be demonstrated.

Some words rom PresidentObama’s inauguration speech stillecho in my mind.

inormation, contact your localPSR chapter or Ira Shorr, directoro outreach at the national oce,ishorr@psr.org.

In a joint project with Interna-

tional Physicians or Preventiono Nuclear War, PSR is collect-ing signatures o senior medi-cal proessionals on a letter to bedelivered to Presidents Obamaand Medvedev urging them to im-mediately initiate negotiationson a convention or the globalelimination o nuclear weapons.

As part o our work with theCampaign or a Nuclear WeaponsFree World, PSR chapters are also

… What is required o us now isa new era o responsibility — arecognition on the part o every 

 American, that we have duties toourselves, our nation, and the

 world; duties that we do not grudg-ingly accept, but rather seize gladly,

rm in the knowledge that there isnothing so satisying to the spirit,so dening o our character thangiving our all to a dicult task.

That is exactly what PSR is allabout. We are striving to addresssome o the greatest threats to humansurvival. Yes, the tasks are dicult.But the threats are real. And the op-portunities beore us are real. Wemust seize them.

collecting signatures on letters toCongress advocating or dramaticreductions in U.S. and Russiannuclear stockpiles, the raticationo the Comprehensive NuclearTest Ban Treaty, and other criticalsteps to zero nuclear weapons.

Following up successul events in2008, a number o PSR chaptersare planning major community events on eliminating nuclear

 weapons, in conjunction with lo-cal universities and World AfairsCouncils.

For more inormation on PSR’sapproach to nuclear weapons issues,contact Jill Parillo, deputy director o security at jparillo@psr.org.

STEPSTOZErO

Continued from page 1

Peter Wilk, Representative Betsy

Markey (D-CO), and SusanShaer, WAND executive direc-tor, on Inauguration morning.

PSR

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