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As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of its publication, the issues addressed by "Silent Spring" are more relevant than ever:
What impact do pesticides and chemical pollution have on our environment and our Ocean? Do women have a specific role to play in environmental-related issues? Why is it crucial to popularize scientific knowledge? How can we best achieve this? Which is the path towards sustainable development?

These issues will be discussed through presentations and debates with the audience. It will be possible to send questions during the event using IOC email address below.
Rachel Carson cared deeply about the natural world around her. As a marine biologist her work focused mainly on marine life and on the dangers of chemical pollution; It laid the foundation for the modern environmental movement. "Silent Spring" had an immediate, profound impact that still resonates today. She wrote about technical issues in a beautiful, accessible style, thus reaching a broad audience.

Carson argued that pesticides are more properly termed "biocides" because of their detrimental effects on the environment, rarely limited to the targeted pests. Observing that the indiscriminate use of pesticides were killing songbirds, she was inspired by a phrase from a John Keats poem—"And no birds sing" to name the book. Silent Spring elicited a public outcry for direct action followed by a brutal backlash from the chemical industry, often tainted with sexism.