Mike Belliveau - Founder, President and Executive Director of Defend Our Health

Mike Belliveau is the Founder, President and Executive Director of Defend Our Health, which is a national organization, based in Maine, that has advanced public health, environmental justice and clean production since 2002. For over forty years, Mike has led chemical policy reform and worked with corporations to phase out toxic chemical use.

Defend Our Health has just released an innovative scientific paper (Hidden Hazards: The Chemical Footprint of a Plastic Bottle )which illustrates the comprehensive cost of a plastic bottle, from creation to waste. Many of the dangerous chemicals used to make PET plastic bottles are either migrating out of the bottle into the food and beverages they contain, or are polluting the waterways upstream, where the plastic is produced.

Belliveau doesn't despair because he sees solutions. He says, "There's a better way of doing things, so let's put those in place. We have an obligation to future generations to make a difference."