Introduction to Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals

A JOINT ENDOCRINE SOCIETY–IPEN INITIATIVE
TO RAISE GLOBAL AWARENESS ABOUT
ENDOCRINE-DISRUPTING CHEMICALS
Founded in 1916, the Endocrine Society is
the world’s oldest, largest, and most active
organization devoted to research on hormones
and the clinical practice of endocrinology.
The Endocrine Society’s membership
consists of over 18,000 scientists,
physicians, educators, nurses, and students
in more than 100 countries. Society members represent all basic, applied and
clinical interests in endocrinology. Included among the Society’s members are the
world’s leading experts on the health effects of EDCs.
Endocrine Society members have been at the forefront of scientific advancements
in the field of EDCs since it was first recognized that exogenous chemicals can
have effects on endocrine systems. The Society held its first public meeting on
EDCs in conjunction with its Annual Meeting in San Francisco in 2005. The Society’s
landmark 2009 Scientific Statement on EDCs was the first comprehensive
review of the EDC literature, and it represented the first public statement on the
issue from a major mainstream international medical society.
IPEN is a leading global network of 700
non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
working in more than 100 developing
countries and countries with economies
in transition. IPEN works to establish and
implement safe chemicals policies and practices to protect human health and the
environment. It does this by building the capacity of its member organizations to
implement on-the-ground activities, learn from each other’s work, and work at the
international level to set priorities and achieve new policies. Its mission is a toxicsfree
future for all.
IPEN has been engaged in the SAICM process since 2003, and its global network
helped to develop the SAICM international policy framework. At its founding, in
1998, IPEN focused on advancing the development and implementation of the
Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants (POPs). Today, its mission
also includes promoting safe chemicals management through the SAICM process
(where it holds the public interest organization seat on the SAICM Bureau), halting
the spread of toxic metals, and building a movement for a toxics-free future.
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