Stopping our Plastics Disaster
Saving Ourselves, Saving our Planet: Stopping our Plastics Disaster
In October 2024, as an alternative to Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Breast Cancer Action Quebec (BCAQ) launched an innovative project that ties health, social justice, and environmental concerns together. Entitled “Saving Ourselves, Saving Our Planet: Stopping our Plastics Disaster”, this project aimed to educate and mobilize people against the destructive effects of plastics on our health, communities, and planet.
This initiative highlighted the connections between:
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The toxicity of plastics, including their effects on health (cancer, reproductive and neurological toxicity).
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Environmental racism, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities and the Global South.
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The urgency of action to create a healthier, more sustainable, and equitable future.
2026 Update
Our mobilization against the plastics disaster continues.On May 13, 2026, we hosted a participatory event marking the launch of our new guide “We’re All in the Same Boat: Your Anti-Plastic Toolkit (Beyond Recycling)”. This event invited the public to collectively reflect on the links between plastics, health, environmental justice, and social justice, as well as possible pathways for action toward a future beyond the plastic crisis. Event details here. Full event details here.
We are proud to launch our new toolkit: “We’re All in the Same Boat: Your Anti-Plastic Toolkit (Beyond Recycling)”
This guide offers concrete ways to better understand plastic-related issues and take action. It covers:
- The impacts of plastics on human health and the environment
- Toxic substances in plastics (PFAS, bisphenols, phthalates, and other endocrine disruptors)
- Links to cancers, hormonal disorders, neurotoxicity, and reproductive health impacts
- Environmental justice and environmental racism issues
- The limits of recycling and false solutions
- Systemic alternatives and collective action pathways
Take action
We are mobilizing through a tool that allows people to send pre-filled letters directly to federal ministers and decision-makers, calling for strong measures to address plastic pollution and its impacts on health and communities.
Our demands include:
- Strengthening and expanding bans on harmful single-use plastics
- Eliminating toxic chemical additives in plastics
- Supporting truly circular reuse and refill systems
- Prioritizing public health and environmental justice
- Supporting an ambitious global plastics treaty
✉️ Send your letter to ministers:
Mobilizing for a Global Plastics Treaty
In December 2024, negotiations for the international plastics treaty took place in Busan, South Korea. We were advocating for an ambitious and legally binding treaty that includes:
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A global reduction in plastic production.
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The end of plastic waste exports to Global South countries.
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Concrete commitments to protect public health and address environmental injustices.
Our Past Actions
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Collective Letter to Minister Steven Guilbeault
In October 2024, we sent a letter supported by 31 organizations from Quebec, urging Canada to adopt a strong position during the negotiations. The letter denounced the devastating effects of plastics on health and historically marginalized communities.
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Online Mobilization and Popular Education Campaign
Throughout October and November, we conducted a digital popular education campaign to raise awareness about the toxicity of plastics, their links to cancer, environmental racism, and their impact on marginalized communities. This campaign included:
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Educational posts on social media.
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Interactive tools to deepen understanding of plastics-related environmental issues.
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A call to action to urge policymakers to act.
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Participation in a Roundtable with Environment and Climate Change Canada
On November 13, 2024, we participated in a roundtable bringing together various stakeholders from the plastics lifecycle. We presented our key demands and stressed the importance of an ambitious treaty to protect the most vulnerable communities.
- Advocating for Concrete Actions
During the November 13 roundtable, we reiterated our request for an official meeting with the Minister to discuss the necessary measures ahead of the international negotiations.
Stay Engaged
Despite recent political changes in Canada and the United States, our commitment remains steadfast. While a fully binding treaty has not yet been adopted, discussions are progressing, and we continue to push for meaningful advancements in the coming months.
We will keep you updated on future developments and concrete actions. Together, we can protect the health of women, marginalized communities, and our planet.
Join us today to end the plastics era!
Illustrations by Niti Marcelle Mueth.
Project made possible thanks to the support of the Dragonfly Fund.Plastics are toxic and forever
Plastics are made from oil or natural gas to which toxic plasticizers are added to create the desired characteristics for whichever plastics product is being produced. Every plastic item ever produced still exists and will exist for hundreds, if not thousands more years. They never fully decompose. They just break down into smaller microplastics.Plastics increase the risk of breast cancer
Some of the toxic plasticizers leach out of plastics, including microplastics, creating a wide range of health harms to humans, animals, and our environment generally. A wide range of plasticizers, such as bisphenols, phthalates, flame retardants, and PFAS, have estrogenic endocrine-disrupting effects which increase breast cancer risk as well as other toxic health effects.Plastics are neurotoxic and reprotoxic
Many of the chemicals used in plastic production are neurotoxic, meaning they damage the nervous system. Phthalates, bisphenols, and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals can interfere with brain development, cognitive function, and even contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders. At the same time, these chemicals also affect reproductive health, altering hormone function, reducing fertility, and increasing risks of reproductive disorders.Plastics increase the risk of endometriosis and fibroids
Plastic-related chemicals, particularly endocrine disruptors like bisphenols and phthalates, are linked to the development of endometriosis and uterine fibroids. These toxic chemicals mimic or interfere with hormones, leading to imbalances that can trigger or exacerbate these painful and chronic conditions in women.Plastics are environmental racism
From their extraction as fossil fuels to their production, use, and disposal, plastics disproportionately harm racialized and Indigenous communities. Toxic plasticizers pollute the air, water, and land of marginalized communities, both locally and globally. Plastics are dumped in the Global South, poisoning land and water sources and perpetuating environmental injustice and racism at every stage of their life cycle.
Let’s take action together! It’s time to break the cycle of plastic pollution and stand up against the toxic effects of plastics on our health and the environment. Let’s raise awareness, demand stricter regulations, fight against environmental racism, and support safer, more sustainable solutions. Our actions today will protect future generations!
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Breast Cancer and Immigrant and Racialized Women
Breast cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer for women with one in nine women in Canada receiving a diagnosis at some point in her life and the second leading cause of death from cancer for women. But breast cancer does not have the same incidence or impact across all populations of women.
Research in Canada over the past ten years has shown that immigrant women from many countries, particularly from East and Southeast Asian countries, have much lower rates of incidence in their country of origin but within ten years of immigrating to Canada, their rate rises to the Canadian average.[1]
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Research also shows that many women of immigrant or diverse origins are often unfamiliar with the disease, may come from cultures where intimate health issues are not discussed, and where the concept of preventive medecine is not well understood
Futhermore, information and educational tools used often do not reflect the realities of women of diverse origins and do not address underlying isues such as unfamiliarity with the Canadian healthcare system and lack of a family doctor who can help women understand the importance of taking actions for their own care and help them navigate the healthcare system.
Moreover, immigrant women may not understand how to access health services or feel it is their right to use them. [2] Finally, they may not be aware of factors that increase breast cancer risk, particularly occupational and environmental exposures.
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There is a further level of complexity as research from the United States and the United Kingdom shows that black women in particular, but also women from other racialized groups, who historically have had lower breast cancer incident rates than white women, have increasing rates of breast cancer, are diagnosed in greater proportions with the more aggressive forms of the disease and have significantly higher mortality rates from the disease than white women.[3]
So there is a racialized component to the disease that women need to understand. Finally, in Quebec, statistics show that lower income women diagnosed with breast cancer have worse outcomes than middle and upper income women.[4] Since immigrant women and some women from racialized groups often have much lower levels of income, this reality must also be taken into account.
For these reasons, women who immigrate to Canada or who are part of different racialized groups have very specific needs regarding information on breast cancer, risk reduction and detection. We have found that very little work has been done in Québec to respond to these issues. Further, we have had representatives from different immigrant communities ask our organization to work with them to educate women about the reality of breast cancer in Canada.
Breast Cancer Action Quebec has developed a program on breast cancer education and risk reduction designed specifically for immigrant women and women from racialized groups with basic information on recognizing warning signs and different aspects of disease prevention that takes into account their cultural and economic realities.
Thanks to funding from the Saunders-Matthey Foundation and the Fondation Solstice, we were able to develop a workshop, tools and videos that form the basis of our Breast Cancer and Immigrant and Racialized Women’s Program.
BOOK OUR WORKSHOP: Breast Cancer: The Realities of Women of Diverse Origins
Breast Cancer Action Quebec does not charge any fees for its public education workshops. However, as a charity, we are very appreciative of donations which allow us to continue and amplify our work in the communitity. For locations outside of Greater Montreal area, we ask to cover the travel costs. Just write us an email with details on where, when and in what language you would like the workshop to be given.
Scholarly and popular articles on Breast Cancer and Immigrant and Racialized Women
Filipino newcomers to Canada diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age. February 24, 2015. St. Michael’s Hospital. Toronto.
Filipinos who move to Canada are diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age than women from other parts of East Asia or Caucasians, new research has found. They are also more likely to be diagnosed with a more aggressive form of cancer and are more likely to undergo a mastectomy, according to a paper published online in the Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health.
read more
Breast Cancer Amongst Filipino Migrants : A Review of the Literature and Ten-Year Institutional Analysis. June 2015. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, Volume 17, Issue 3.
As one migrates from an area of low to high incidence of breast cancer their personal risk of developing breast cancer increases. This is however not equally distributed across all races and ethnicities. This paper specifically examines Filipino migrants. A literature review was conducted to summarize breast cancer incidence, screening practices and trends in treatment amongst Filipino migrants.
Breast cancer in South Asian women often diagnosed at later stage : study. April 20, 2015. The Canadian Press.
Women of South Asian descent are more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer in its later stages compared to the general population, while women of Chinese ethnicity tend to be diagnosed when the disease is at an early stage, an Ontario study has found. Given that Canadians have equal access to health services, the findings suggest programs to promote screening and early diagnosis among South Asian women should take into account cultural factors that may be roadblocks to seeking timely care, the researchers say.
A population-based study of ethnicity and breast cancer stage at diagnosis in Ontario. 2015. Current Oncology, Vol 22, NO 2.
Breast cancer stage at diagnosis is an important predictor of survival. Our goal was to compare breast cancer stage at diagnosis (by American Joint Committee on Cancer criteria) in Chinese and South Asian women with stage at diagnosis in the remaining general population in Ontario.
Young black women less likely to survive breast cancer. October 23, 2013.Cancer Research UK. Young black women in the UK diagnosed with breast cancer aged 40 or younger have poorer overall survival than white women in the same age group, according to a Cancer Research UK study published in the British Journal of Cancer. The researchers, based at the University of Southampton, found that young black women have a higher risk of breast cancer coming back than white women, despite having the same access to healthcare.
Ethnicity and outcome of young breast cancer patients in the United Kingdom : The POSH study. October 22, 2013. British Journal of Cancer.
Black ethnic groups have a higher breast cancer mortality than Whites. American studies have identified variations in tumour biology and unequal health-care access as causative factors. We compared tumour pathology, treatment and outcomes in three ethnic groups in young breast cancer patients treated in the United Kingdom.
Triple negative breast cancer more likely to be diagnosed in black women, regardless of socioeconomic status. May 12, 2014. American Cancer Society.
An analysis of a large nationwide dataset finds that regardless of their socioeconomic status, black women were nearly twice as likely as white women to be diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer, a subtype that has a poorer prognosis. Triple-negative breast cancers are those whose cells lack estrogen receptors and progesterone receptors, and do not have an excess of the HER2 protein on their surfaces. Triple-negative breast cancers tend to grow and spread more quickly than most other types of breast cancer, and a lack of these receptors limits treatment options.
Why is breast cancer becoming deadlier for black women? October 31, 2015. The Guardian.
Why is breast cancer so much deadlier in black women than in white women? On the heels of an alarming new report that black women have caught up with their white counterparts in breast cancer rates, the question has taken on a fresh urgency. But the answer is elusive.
Does ethnicity affect breast cancer biology? March 10, 2016. The European Cancer Organisation.
Although breast cancer is somewhat more aggressive in South Asian and Black women than in White women, this is largely due to age differences between ethnic groups in the UK, according to new research.Dr Toral Gathani, a clinical epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, told the 10th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-10) today (Thursday) that findings from the largest study to date of tumour characteristics in relation to ethnicity suggested that inherent differences in tumour biology between the ethnic groups were unlikely to play a role.
Barriers to early diagnosis of symptomatic breast cancer : a qualitative study of Black African, Black Caribbean and White British women living in the UK. March 13, 2015. BMJ Open.
There are important differences and similarities in barriers to early diagnosis of breast cancer between Black African, Black Caribbean and White British women in the UK. Differences were influenced by country of birth, time spent in UK and age. First generation Black African women experienced most barriers and longest delays. Second generation Black Caribbean and White British women were similar and experienced fewest barriers. Absence of pain was a barrier for Black African and Black Caribbean women. Older White British women (≥70 years) and first generation Black African and Black Caribbean women shared conservative attitudes and taboos about breast awareness. All women viewed themselves at low risk of the disease, and voiced uncertainty over breast awareness and appraising non-lump symptoms. Focus group findings validated and expanded themes identified in interviews.
Differences in breast cancer stage at diagnosis and cancer-specific survival by race and ethnicity in the United States. January 13, 2015. US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health.
Abstract
IMPORTANCE: Women with early-stage breast cancers are expected to have excellent survival rates. It is important to identify factors that predict diagnosis of early-stage breast cancers.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the proportion of breast cancers that were identified at an early stage (stage I) in different racial/ethnic groups and whether ethnic differences may be better explained by early detection or by intrinsic biological differences in tumor aggressiveness.
Study : Black women more likely to die from breast cancer. January 13, 2015. The Canadian Press.
Race may influence whether women diagnosed with breast cancer will survive, suggests a new study which found black women are more likely to die even when their tumours are found when they are small and theoretically easier to treat. The study, which is based on U.S. data, said that even when breast cancer is diagnosed at Stage 1, black women have a higher risk of dying than women of Japanese ethnicity or white women.
Racial disparities in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment by hormone receptor and HER2 status. October 13, 2015. US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Healt.
Abstract
Background: African American and Hispanic women are more likely to be diagnosed with aggressive forms of breast cancer. Disparities within each subtype of breast cancer have not been well documented.
Methods: Using data from 18 SEER cancer registries, we identified 102,064 women aged 20 years or older, diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in 2010–2011, and with known stage, hormone receptor (HR) and HER2 status. Associations between race/ethnicity and cancer stage and receipt of guideline concordant treatment were evaluated according to HR/HER2 status.
Disparities in Breast Cancer Persist Across All Subtypes and Stages. October 13, 2015.Minority women were more likely to have aggressive subtypes of breast cancer and were more likely to receive non-guideline concordant treatment when compared with non-Hispanic white women, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
The environmental injustice of beauty : framing chemical exposures from beauty products as a health disparities concern. August 2017.
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The obstetrics-gynecology community has issued a call to action to prevent toxic environmental chemical exposures and their threats to healthy human reproduction. Recent committee opinions recognize that vulnerable and underserved women may be impacted disproportionately by environmental chemical exposures and recommend that reproductive health professionals champion policies that secure environmental justice. Beauty product use is an understudied source of environmental chemical exposures.
Associations between personal care product use patterns and breast cancer risk among white and black women in the sister study. February 21, 2018. Environmental Health Perspectives.
There is concern that use of personal care products (e.g., cosmetics, lotions, and fragrances) may be associated with breast cancer risk (Brody et al. 2007). These products are a possible source of human exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, such as phthalates, parabens, and phenols (Braun et al. 2014; Dodson et al. 2012; Meeker et al. 2013). Endocrine-disrupting chemicals have been hypothesized to mimic the carcinogenic effects of estrogenic exposures (Chen 2008; Morgan et al. 1998). For example, phthalates, an ingredient commonly used in personal care products, have been associated with risk of breast cancer (López-Carrillo et al. 2010; Shanle and Xu 2011). However, endocrine-disrupting chemicals have a much lower affinity to the estrogen receptor (ER) than does estradiol (Shanle and Xu 2011).
Chemical injustice : the unequal burden of toxic chemicals on women of color and low-income families. February 6, 2015. Reproductive Health Technologies Project., National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health.
Toxic chemicals that harm reproductive health are found in many of the products we use every day, from plastic bottles and bath products to couch cushions and blue jeans. However, the harms caused by these toxic products are not shared equally. Low-income women and women of color shoulder far more than their fair share – they are much more likely to be directly exposed to toxic chemicals at work, at home and through consumer products. Increased exposure to these chemicals means these women are also more likely to experience early puberty, infertility, uterine fibroids, and other reproductive health problems that have been linked to toxic chemicals.
Dark hair dye and chemical relaxers linked to breast cancer. July 12, 2017. Reuters.
African-American and white women who regularly chemically straightened their hair or dyed it dark brown or black had an elevated risk of breast cancer, recent research suggests. “I would be concerned about darker hair dye and hair straighteners,” epidemiologist Tamarra James-Todd said after reviewing the report in Carcinogenesis. “We should really think about using things in moderation and really try to think about being more natural.[1] Ginsburg, O.M. and colleagues. A population-based study of ethnicity and breast cancer stage at diagnosis in Ontario. Current Oncology. Vol. 22, No. 2. April 2015. Simspon, Jory, S. Kaleigh Briggs and Ralph George. Breast Cancer Amongst Filipino Migrants : A review of the literature and Ten-Year Institutional Analysis. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health. Vol. 17, No. 3. June 2015. Pp. 729-736.
[2] Gondek and colleagues. Engaging Immigrant and Refugee Women in Breast Health Education. Journal of Cancer Education. Vol. 30, no. 3. September 2015. Mahamoud, Aziza. Breast Cancer Screening in Racialized Women. Wellesley Institute. February 2014. Nelson, Jennifer and Teresa Macias. Living with a White Disease : Women of Colour and Their Engagement with Breast Cancer Information. University of Toronto. N.D. Vahabi, Mandana. Knowledge, beliefs and information needs of Iranian immigrant women in Toronto regarding breast cancer and screening. Ryerson University. November 2011.
[3] Chen, Lu and Christopher I. Li. Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment by Hormone Receptor and HER2 Status. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. October 13, 2015. Copson, E. and colleagues. Ethnicity and outcome of young breast cancer patients in the United Kingdom : The POSH study. Also see, « Young black women less likely to survive breast cancer. » Medical Express News. October 23, 2013. http ://medicalxpress.com/new.2013-10-young-black-women-survive-breast.html. Iqbal, Javaid and colleagues. Differences in breast cancer stage at diagnosis and cancer-specific survival by race and ethnicity in the United States. Journal of the American Medical Association. Vol 313, No.2. January 13, 2015. Redden, Molly. Why is breast cancer becoming deadlier for black women? The Guardian. October 31, 2015.
[4] Agence de la santé et des services sociaux de Montréal. Rapport du directeur de santé publique 2011. Les inégalités sociales de santé à Montréal. Direction de santé publique. 2e édition. 2012.
Cost of Illness
A project to address the financial burden of a serious illness
Despite our public healthcare system, a serious illness almost always brings unexpected costs to individuals and families. Depending on the situation, sometimes these costs are big. In fact, breast cancer is the poster child for a serious illness that can bring huge costs to women. We have met women who needed to go on welfare when they couldn’t work through their treatment.
For this reason, we developed a new project on the Cost of Illness with a great group of partners – Relais-Femmes, ACEF Rive-Sud, Proche aidance Québec and CIAFT – funded by the Autorité des marchés financiers. We created a bilingual website that brings users through the range of financial impacts of a serious illness and how they can protect themselves depending on their situation.
To listen to the stories of Anushka, Judith, Jean-Louis, Patricia and Moira – people who have faced the challenges of a critical illness and the costs associated with it, find our Youtube series here.
Reform of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act
Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA)
It’s the foundation of our environmental regulations and it needs to be implement.
We’re working hard to make sure we get this right!One year since the adoption of Bill S-5
The updated CEPA is the tool; its implementation is the change.
Brief to the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources:
Between February 2022, when Bill S-5, the bill that strengthened the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, was introduced and June 13, 2023 when it receive royal assent, Breast Cancer Action Québec, along with our broad network of members and ally groups, worked long and hard to make the proposed amendments as strong as possible. We are particularly proud of the women’s groups in Quebec that joined us in this fight as well as all the individuals who wrote to their MPs and everyone who signed onto our letters. So many groups across Quebec and Canada worked to make this happen.
On this one-year anniversary, we don’t know whether to be cautiously optimistic or quite nervous that all the work required for implementation of the right to a healthy environment and to establish the range of regulations for better controls on toxics will be finished before the next elections. If they are not in place and there is a change of government, it is anyone’s guess as to whether this work will be meaningfully continued.
The government has created this very good overview of what the amendments should achieve, but only if they are implemented vigorously.
Environment and Climate Change Canada has a very large amount of work on its cutting board right now. It will require determination and a good strategy to get it all accomplished before the next elections in a way that provides real change over the long term.
Quotes from groups are provided at the end of the document and here’s ours:
“The passage of Bill S-5 is the culmination of work by so many groups and citizens across Quebec and Canada for a stronger Canadian Environmental Protection Act. The Bill represents an important move forward with the inclusion of the right to a healthy environment in federal law, and much-needed requirements on chemical regulations to reign in the widespread use of toxic substances. The next steps are equally important as the government moves forward with the new Bill as there are important new tools to be developed for its implementation in order to truly protect the health of all people in Canada.”
– Jennifer Beeman, Program and Advocacy Coordinator, Breast Cancer Action Quebec******************************************
Breast Cancer Action Quebec, in collaboration with many other health and environmental groups, is working to tighten regulations on the use of toxic chemicals used in everyday consumer goods and products. From flame retardants in furniture and electronic equipment to phthalates in cosmetics, perfumes, hairsprays, food packaging, shower curtains, these chemicals and many others have serious and proven negative effects on health and the environment.
The Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) defines what constitutes a toxic substance and establishes, among other things, controls on emissions of air and water pollution and hazardous waste. The law regulates air emissions in relation to greenhouse gases. As such, it aims to prevent pollution and protect the environment and human health. A wide range of federal, provincial and municipal laws and regulations are based on these definitions and controls.
This legislation is outdated and makes it impossible to effectively manage the multitude of new chemical compounds used in our consumer products. Every day, Canadians are exposed to hundreds of toxic substances, many of which are associated with certain types of cancers, reproductive disorders, respiratory diseases and more. As a result, thousands of people die prematurely and millions more suffer from preventable diseases.
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The need for CEPA reform
The former law:
- allowed the circulation of substances that are hormone-disrupting, carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for reproduction, neurological development or foetal development;
- has limited implementation of the pollution prevention program and as a result, allows for ever increasing amounts of toxic substances to be released into the environment;
- did not establish binding national standards for air quality or drinking water.
The class of chemicals that are “endocrine disrupting”, i. e. hormone-disrupting, has been shown to be associated with an increase in hormone-dependent cancers (such as breast and prostate cancer), chronic diseases (such as diabetes and asthma), neurological disorders (such as ADHD and autism) and reproductive disorders (in both sexes).
All people in Canada deserve to live in a healthy and safe environment.
The Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development (ENVI) on CEPA made 87 recommendations in its report to Parliament in 2018.
There is an urgent need for the Parliament of Canada to act quickly to protect Canadians and the environment.
If you are concerned about these issues and want your voice to be heard, please join us in our fight.
Breast Cancer Action Quebec in the News
We Are Fighting Toxic Exposures
The CEPA Reform We Need
Our Brief to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development
As many of you know, our chemical regulatory system allows chemicals to go into production and circulation without proof of their safety. We are then required to fight a reactive battle, toxic substance by toxic substance, to prove their harm and get them out of circulation and out of our environment. In many cases, our exposure to toxic substances continues for decades after bans go into effect.
Currently, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) is up for review, including the vital pollution control and toxic substance regulations. CEPA is the “mother” of our environmental regulations, as it defines toxic chemicals and how they are managed, it outlines the major aspects of pollution emission controls and much more.
→ Canada is considered by many as having the weakest chemical regulations of all Western countries. ← In his presentation to the Federal Parliament’s Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development, the president of the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada said, “We are here to tell you today one key message. The chemicals management plan has been and remains on course to be a stunning public policy success.” The chemical industry thinks CEPA and its Chemical Management Plan are excellent and do not need any modifications.
We beg to differ and presented our views in our brief submitted to the Standing Committee. You can read our brief here.
Youth Program
The Youth Program of Breast Cancer Action Quebec
For almost 15 years, Breast Cancer Action Quebec has run a vibrant youth program teaching teenagers and university students about toxic chemicals in cosmetics and consumer products. The program has many different projects, some the result of foundation funding, others the result of volunteer work by young people.
Early intervention
True breast cancer prevention means intervening early with young people. Pre-adolescence and adolescence represent critical windows of exposure as the body is particularly sensitive to hormone disruption by endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). These chemicals are found in a vast array of everyday products and have been linked to a spectrum of health problems including developmental disorders, reproductive organ malformations particularly in boys, obesity, early-onset puberty and hormone-dependent cancers, including breast cancer. The young people involved in this arts-based program chose to call it Toxic Resistance to reflect the empowering nature of their work.
While educating young people on these issues, we also explore social norms that drive our consumption of these products. Girls from a number of sociocultural backgrounds face even more complex pressures to conform and thus may use particularly dangerous products such as hair relaxers and skin lighteners. Furthermore, this is the stage when young people are developing the personal habits that they will continue into adulthood.
Working in Schools
Our art based approach we use in schools and community groups allows the young people (both girls and boys) to produce strong works of self-expression that are important and deeply touching on issues of self-care, body posivity for all young people, critical thinking and a proactive approach to their mental and physical health.
Currently, BCAQc is testing a model teen health empowerment program that we developed in the Secondary IV Ethics Classes in a public high school in Montreal. The challenges are significant, but the kids are bright and have a lot to say on the issues they face. And they want to learn more about their environment and its impact on their health. At the end of this year, we will be able to offer this program in other high schools as well.
Some people do not understand why a breast cancer organization works with teenagers. Interestingly, it’s something we never have to explain to the kids.
We sincerely thank our funders, the Betty Averbach Foundation and the Fondation Solstice, for their support of this important work.
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