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Rachel Carson

Origin: Springdale, Pennsylvania
(May 27, 1907 – April 14, 1964)

Heroic Values: Achievement, Courage, Faith, Integrity, Vision, Wisdom

Background

Rachel as an adolescent was very solitary and spent the majority of her time with nature and writing about it. She was first published at the age of 10 and continued her love of literary work at the Pennsylvania College for Women, Pittsburgh, majoring in English composition. By her junior year, she switched to zoology major and eventually received her Masters from Johns Hopkins University in 1932.

Time Magazine has Rachel as one of the top 100 most influential people of the last century; “Before there was an environmental movement, there was one brave woman and her very brave book.” This references Rachel’s book ‘Silent Spring’. It highlighted the danger of synthetic pesticides on the environment. Due to her popularity from her trilogy of books on the sea; ‘The Sea Around Us,’ ‘The Edge of the Sea’ and ‘Under the Sea Wind,’ the book was well received by the American public. The Kennedy Administration ordered a study on the effects of DDT and other synthetic pesticides and their effect on the environment. After 7 years of inquiry and even Rachel testifying in front of Kennedy’s commission and Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency was born.

Rachel was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She was ahead of her time in thinking and although did not create a generation of activists she will always be looked to as woman of inspiration for modern scientists and researchers to continue the fight for a better environment.

Submitted by:Kit Bennett

Sources

Wikipedia
The online encyclopedia

The Time 100
Carson's profile

Bill Moyers Journal
Carson's profile