Carolyn Raffensperger

Carolyn E. Raffensperger is an environmental lawyer and the executive director of the Science & Environmental Health Network, as well as being a leading expert on the Precautionary Principle. She has authored a number of papers and publications, as well as being featured in a number of notable magazines.^[1] Raffensperger was also a state field representative for the Sierra Club.^[2]

Carolyn Raffensperger
Occupation	author, lawyer, environmentalist
Language	English
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Wheaton College; Northwestern University
Spouse	Fred Kirschenmann

Early life

Raffensperger was raised in Chicago and is the daughter of John G. Raffensperger, a paediatric surgeon.^[3] After gaining an interest in archaeology while at college, she went on to study a bachelor's degree at Wheaton College, before then completing her master's degree at Northwestern University. She then worked in Dolores, Colorado, studying artifacts from the Anasazi people.^[4] She went on to work for the Sierra Club.

Career

Further information: Science & Environmental Health Network and Precautionary Principle

Raffensperger joined the Science & Environmental Health Network (SEHN) in 1994 and became its executive director.^[5][6] Raffensperger has written on the Precautionary Principle.^[7][8][9] She has spoken in public on the issue and has appeared on TEDx^[10] and EnviroVideo with Karl Grossman.^[11] In 1998, Raffensperger convened and attended the Wingspread Conference on the Precautionary Principle.^[12] The first use of the phrase "ecological medicine" is attributed to Raffensperger, in an article entitled "Our Planet, Our Selves" on the UTNE website.^[13] Ecological medicine refers to the way in which people and the environment interact, and how an individual's acts towards the environment can have a negative effect on health.^[14]

Publications

• Raffensperger, Jackson, Tickner (1999). Protecting Public Health and the Environment: Implementing The Precautionary Principle, Island Press, 391 pages. ISBN 978-1559636889
• Raffensperger, Tickner, Myers (1999). The Precautionary Principle in Action: A Handbook.
• Raffensperger, Myers (2005). Precautionary Tools for Reshaping Environmental Policy. MIT Press, 400 pages. ISBN 978-0262633239