IICPH Newsletter  /  Fall/Winter 2004

The IICPH Resource Centre is a quiet place. The hum of the computer, the clicking of keys, the ring of the telephone are the only sounds most of the time. As I process the many emails each day, most of the messages are about communications from other NGOs, information about environmental health issues. But the ones that tug at the heart come from families or victims of environmental pollution. Most are from the USA and concern exposure to low-level ionizing radiation. Amchitka, Three Mile Island, military service. Recently, it was a soldier invalided home from Iraq with symptoms similar to Depleted Uranium exposure who was classified as having mental disorders. We can refer them to environmental doctors through Dr. Bertell’s networks in the US, but unfortunately for most, alleviation is all that can be expected.

Although saddened when we learn of these personal tragedies, it only hits home when it is someone you love. That goes for everyone. Many of us who do this kind of work do have that kind of connection. It is particularly hard when it is a child.

Dr. Bertell is the heart, the spirit, inspiration, and source of knowledge and wisdom for IICPH. The Resource Centre is the circulating system.