What does a lead poisoning tragedy from decades ago have to do with the recent Supreme Court Monsanto decision? More than you might think. This story illustrates why corporate accountability matters and what can happen when the cost of harming people is weighed against the cost of preventing it.

When companies fail to warn consumers about known risks, who holds them accountable? Civil lawsuits have long been one of the only tools families have to hold companies accountable after preventable poisoning, including lead exposure. Weakening those protections should concern us all.

Every child deserves access to safe water at school. Testing is an important first step, but ending childhood lead exposure requires lasting investment in the places where children learn, grow, and spend their days. www.nwpb.org/local/2026-0...

How Washington is working to get rid of lead contamination in public school drinking water

Time's up for many schools in Washington to test drinking water for lead. Turns out, some lead contamination at older schools is more common than you think – but fixes are in the works.

nwpb.org

This ruling could have consequences far beyond a single product. The U.S. Supreme Court has sided with Monsanto in a case that could limit legal options for people who claim they developed cancer after using Roundup, raising broader questions about corporate accountability and consumer protections.

For years, advocates have had to fight for every step forward on lead poisoning prevention. This time, something different happened.

For nearly a century, lead smelters released toxic pollution into communities across the country. Author Caroline Fraser shares why decades of research on lead exposure, brain development, and crime still matters today. Find the full episode in our bio.

Ted Bundy, Gary Ridgway, and Charles Manson all had ties to the same lead-polluted region. Caroline Fraser, author of Murderland, explains how that discovery led her to investigate whether environmental exposure could help explain the rise of violent crime in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s.

This is what failure looks like. When we wait for kids to test positive, the exposure has already happened and the harm has been set into motion. Lead poisoning is a preventable disease. We need prevention before exposure ever reaches a child’s body.

Lead poisoning is entirely preventable, yet hundreds of millions of children around the world remain at risk each year. To help change that, the World Health Organization developed a practical framework that gives countries evidence-based guidance for reducing lead exposure before it happens.

Summer brings more time outdoors, open windows, and home activity! Enjoy the heat — while keeping a few precautions in mind to protect your family.

To those committed to improving broken systems and protecting children and families from preventable harm. To those who work to keep our city and country safe and healthy for us all. This Fourth of July, we're celebrating the people who show up to build a healthier, safer future, together.

Some encouraging news — the numbers are moving in the right direction in Cleveland! But even with decline, hundreds of children are still being exposed to a toxin we already know how to prevent. And progress can’t become permission to slow down. www.wosu.org/2026-06-16/c...

Child lead poisoning cases continue to decline in Cleveland

Cleveland continues to see a downward trend in lead poisoning among children tested since 2023. 14.5% of kids tested positive in 2025. Even so, more than 1,100 children were found to have some degree ...

wosu.org

Knowledge is power, and when it comes to childhood lead poisoning, some lessons are too often still experienced firsthand. To protect their children from this preventable disease, people can't be kept in the dark.

We've worked with Illapa Sairitupac for years through local efforts to reduce lead exposure in New York City, and we've seen firsthand his commitment to protecting children's health.

This past week, Shannon Burkett attended the Second Annual Research Conference on Global Lead Exposure in London, co-hosted by the Partnership for a Lead-Free Future and the Center for Global Development.

Michigan lawmakers are pushing new legislation that would require baby food manufacturers to test for lead and other toxic metals — and make those results publicly available to families. michiganadvance.com/2026/05/21/l...

Lawmakers lay out policies to ban lead in baby food, set stricter standards for lead exposure • Michigan Advance

As Michigan works to test children for exposure to lead, the House Health Policy Committee on Wednesday took a look at a trio of policies intended to further limit exposure and provide treatment, whil...

michiganadvance.com

Lead poisoning is not just a public health issue — it’s a racial justice issue. For generations, discriminatory housing policies, redlining, and systemic disinvestment have left Black and brown families disproportionately exposed to lead in their homes, schools, and neighborhoods.

In Cleveland, childhood lead poisoning rates remain nearly four times the national average, driven largely by aging housing with lead paint. www.ideastream.org/environment-...

Cleveland advocates outline demands for city to solve decades-long lead paint crisis

Cleveland’s lead paint awareness advocates say mobile testing vans, a city led resource center and an audit will help clean up homes and reduce cases of childhood lead poisoning. But they say city off...

ideastream.org

Lead is in the walls and water of many places NYers live, go to school, work, and visit. Its life-altering impacts pose a potential danger to everyone in our state - but lead poisoning disproportionately affects Black & Brown NYers.⁠ Listen to the full ep here, or wherever you listen to podcasts:

What’s Causing New York’s Lead Crisis? With Shannon Burkett

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We're thrilled to have Shannon Burkett featured by the NYCLU, sharing her family's story of experiencing childhood lead poisoning and the important work of preventing this from happening to others. Listen, learn more and get involved at endleadpoisoning.com.

NYCLU@nyclu.org · 3mo ago

Thousands of lives are impacted by lead poisoning, but lawmakers aren’t doing nearly enough to combat it. On Rights This Way, we're joined by NYCLU's Lanessa Owens-Chaplin & Shannon Burkett, Award-winning actor, writer, producer, and nurse, to talk about how we can prevent lead poisoning in NY.

Mothers are incredible. This Mother’s Day, we’re celebrating Shannon Burkett and her relentless work to help protect children and families from lead poisoning, alongside so many mothers we’ve met in this fight who work tirelessly to keep their kids safe from this preventable disease.

In Buffalo, the condition of housing is directly tied to lead exposure. Anna Falicov explains why addressing toxic housing is essential to ending lead poisoning for children in Buffalo, NY and beyond. For more on this important topic, find the full episode at the link in our bio.

Lead poisoning in Buffalo has reached emergency levels. In our latest LEAD Talks episode, Anna Falicov breaks down what that actually means and why urgent, coordinated action is critical to protect children and families right now.

Our work advocating for lead poisoning prevention continues to build momentum — but for those new here, this is where our journey began. Experience a riveting account of one family’s experience with lead poisoning through LEAD: How This Story Ends is Up to Us.

Programs exist to help schools test drinking water for lead at no cost, but adoption can be slow. Public health experts warn that without consistent testing and reporting, families may not know whether children are being exposed to contaminated water at school. www.npr.org/2026/01/28/n...

Despite free testing, some schools have been slow to check for lead in their water

There's federal money for local schools to test their water for lead, which can be dangerous for kids. Many school systems opt not to test their faucets, even if it's free.

npr.org

Lead exposure doesn’t just come from aging pipes or peeling paint. Investigators recently shared concern that some children’s clothing may contain unsafe levels of toxic lead, demonstrating how this dangerous metal can appear in unexpected places. www.newsweek.com/parents-warn...

Parents warned after unsafe levels of toxic lead found in kids’ clothing

Researchers say children are most vulnerable to lead—and also most likely to mouth clothing—putting them at greater risk.

newsweek.com

Last month, advocates, families, and lawmakers gathered at the NY State Capitol to push for the Lead Pipe Replacement Act. This important legislation aims to remove hundreds of thousands of lead service lines still delivering drinking water to homes across the state. www.wamc.org/news/2026-03...

Advocates rally for Lead Pipe Replacement Act at state Capitol

Lawmakers and advocates gathered at the New York State Capitol Wednesday to call for the passage of legislation that would create a plan to replace lead pipes contaminating drinking water throughout t...

wamc.org

Lead exposure doesn’t just come from aging pipes or peeling paint. Investigators recently shared concern that some children’s clothing may contain unsafe levels of toxic lead, demonstrating how this dangerous metal can appear in unexpected places. www.newsweek.com/parents-warn...

Parents warned after unsafe levels of toxic lead found in kids’ clothing

Researchers say children are most vulnerable to lead—and also most likely to mouth clothing—putting them at greater risk.

newsweek.com

Here’s why public awareness and engagement is crucial, when it comes to lead poisoning prevention: Congress recently voted to cut $125 million in federal funding dedicated to replacing toxic lead pipes. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Outrage after US Congress votes to slash $125m in funding to replace toxic lead pipes

Move will hit Michigan, Illinois, New York and other states with highest levels of lead drinking water pipes the hardest

theguardian.com

When you can identify the source of the lead, you can begin to solve the problem. Our latest podcast guest, Dr. Kathrin Schilling, MSc, PhD, unveiled new technology that has the potential to revolutionize how we identify and eliminate sources of lead.