Dr. Helen Caldicott

Nobel-nominated anti-nuclear activist to give Lamb Peace Lecture

Dr. Helen Caldicott, founder and president of the Nuclear Policy and Research Institute and former Nobel Peace Prize nominee, will deliver the 2005 Edward Lamb Peace Lecture at the University. She will discuss “United States Nuclear Policies: Environmental Stability and International Security” at 7:30 p.m. March 15 in 228 Bowen-Thompson Student Union.

Described as the “single most articulate and passionate advocate of citizen action to remedy the nuclear and environmental crises,” Caldicott has devoted the last 35 years to educating the public worldwide about the environmental hazards of nuclear energy and warfare. Named by the Smithsonian Institution as one of the most influential women of the 20th century, she was nominated for the Nobel Prize in 1985 and won the Lannan Foundation’s 2003 Prize for Cultural Freedom.

“Helen Caldicott will be one of the most interesting and important speakers we've had in years—and we've had some good speakers,” said Dr. Philip Terrie, American culture studies faculty and one of the Lamb lecture organizers. “She is internationally known for her efforts to promote peace and environmental stability. Anyone concerned about the future of life on this planet should hear what Dr. Caldicott has
to say.”

Caldicott received her medical degree from the University of Adelaide in Australia in 1961. She played a major role in Australia’s opposition to French atmospheric nuclear testing in the Pacific in 1971, and in 1975 worked with Australian trade unions to educate members about the health dangers of producing nuclear fuel, especially uranium mining. That year she also founded the Cystic Fibrosis Clinic at the Adelaide Children’s Hospital.

After coming to the United States in 1977, she taught pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and was on the staff of the Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Boston until she resigned to work full time on the prevention of nuclear war. In 1980 she founded Women’s Action for Nuclear Disarmament.

She co-founded Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), an association of 23,000 doctors committed to educating their colleagues about the dangers of nuclear power, war and weapons. She also helped start similar groups in countries around the world, and the international umbrella group of PSR, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1985. Caldicott was nominated individually for the peace prize that year by Nobel Laureate Dr. Linus Pauling.

She has lectured and written widely on the dangers of the nuclear age, including numerous articles and five books, beginning with Nuclear Madness in 1979 and, most recently, The New Nuclear Danger: George Bush’s Military-Industrial Complex, published in its second edition last year by The New Press in the United States and by publishers in four other countries. She has been the subject of several films, one of which, “If You Love This Planet,” won the Academy Award for best documentary in 1982.

Today, Caldicott continues her work with the Nuclear Policy and Research Institute, a research and education organization whose mission is to educate the public about the consequences of the nuclear arms race, reliance on nuclear power and the health effects of exposure to nuclear waste. She divides her time between the United States and Australia.

The Edward Lamb Peace Lecture was established in 1986 to honor northwest Ohio attorney Edward Lamb, who was committed to social justice, civil rights and world peace. The foundation he established to promote education in these areas continues to support work on a variety of issues, especially peace, health and the environment. Originally, the lecture series addressed issues of conflict and world security. Since the end of the Cold War, it has focused on environmental issues and how they affect international stability.

In addition to the foundation's support, the lecture is sponsored by BGSU's Environmental Health and American Culture Studies programs.