Chasing Molecules

This is the "friendly fire" of our own creations and lifestyle. For the sake of convenience and economy we have added synthetic chemicals to millions of products we use every day. Thousands of these chemicals have never been tested for their safety even though they are all around us-in our homes, schools, food and neighborhoods-and in our bodies. The effects range from diabetes to cancer and reproductive and neurological disorders.

What if we had the power to stop using these chemicals? What if instead of warning people that a chemical is harmful and even deadly, we didn't use it? That is the promise of green chemistry-a world where the pollutants stay out of products and out of people.

In Chasing Molecules, investigative journalist Elizabeth Grossman explores the world of green chemistry and its potential to transform manufacturing with unprecedented benefits to the corporate bottom line and our health. Grossman is the acclaimed writer who brought national attention to the poisons in computers and electronics and the value of reclaiming e-waste in High Tech Trash.

Grossman finds that a chemical revolution is brewing, and its rallying call is "benign by design." Leading scientists are creating new, non-toxic materials that work with natural systems instead of disrupting them. Through interviews and by exploring cutting edge concepts, Grossman gives us a first look at the next "Big Idea" in green technology, along with the passion, excitement and hope on the front lines of innovation.

Elizabeth Grossman is the author of High Tech Trash: Digital Devices, Hidden Toxics, and Human Health, Watershed: The Undamming of America, and Adventuring Along the Lewis and Clark Trail. Her writing has appeared in Mother Jones, The Nation, Salon, The Washington Post, and other publications. She lives in Portland, Oregon.