123: Water, Public Health, Advocacy, + a Julia Roberts Film

I am deeply honored today to be joined by the one, the only, Erin Brockovich. Erin Brockovich is consumer advocate, environmental activist, and legal clerk who, despite her lack of education in the law, was instrumental in building a case against the Pacific Gas and Electric Company of California in 1993. Perhaps you’ve heard of this case before… because the case inspired the 2000 film, Erin Brockovich, in which Erin is portrayed by Julia Roberts. It’s a fabulous film and true story – the Hinkley settlement, at $333 million, is the largest class action lawsuit in US history. Erin and I today are speaking about her new book, Superman’s Not Coming: Our National Water Crisis and What We The People Can Do About It.

We speak about the film’s influence on her career, the worldwide response about communities concerned about their own drinking water, and what we should be watching out for today (spoiler: chemicals like PFOS and PFOA, the largest emerging contaminants in our water!). We additionally discuss the EPA and Erin’s public health mapping platform helping bridge the gaps between public health and legislation.

Let’s hang out! Instagram is @ecochicpodcast / @lauraediez, + I am now on Twitter, @lauraediez. We’re on Facebook, ECO CHIC Podcast. Email me at laura@lauraediez.com. You can sign up for our newsletter + support our shop at totallyecochic.com (code ECOCHIC gets you 10% off!).