Winter 2008
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Ecology Center's Tracey Easthope Joins International Delegation to India to Discuss Dow Chemical Company, Meet Survivors of Bhopal

January/February Issue, 2004

Ecology Center Environmental Health Director Tracey Easthope in January traveled to India to meet with an international delegation of Dow Chemical watchdogs. Easthope will address delegates at the World Social Forum and meet with survivors and supporters of the Bhopal chemical disaster.

The World Social Forum is a gathering of more than 80,000 people from around the world concerned about providing for the basic needs of all people, including clean air and water, basic rights, and economic security. About 4,000 international journalists are expected to attend.

At the World Social Forum, the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal and the Dow Accountability Campaign will organize a series of events to discuss Dow’s corporate irresponsibility. A January 18 keynote speech will highlight the company’s attempts to evade criminal and civil liabilities in Bhopal. A testimony session for an audience of 1,000 people will highlight the global nature of Dow’s toxic legacies with presentations from Vietnam, Bhopal, and Michigan.

“This is the first time that Dow-impacted communities from around the world are joining hands,” said Easthope. “That’s good news for public health and the environment and bad news for Dow, given the worldwide scope of Dow’s legacies.” Those addressing the World Social Forum include representatives from the Dow-impacted communities in Michigan, Agent Orange victims from Vietnam, Bhopal survivors, and those affected by Dow’s factory in South Africa.

Easthope’s delegation will visit Bhopal to tour the site of the world’s worst industrial disaster, meet with residents, and visit the clinic set up by the community to help survivors. A pesticide factory released a toxic gas cloud into the community 19 years ago, killing thousands, and injuring more than a hundred thousand persons. Union Carbide owned the facility at the time of the disaster, and has since been acquired by the Dow Chemical Company.

See this press release for additional information on the Dow watchdog delegation at the World Social Forum in India.

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