INTRODUCTION TO ENDOCRINE DISRUPTING CHEMICALS (EDCs) A GUIDE FOR PUBLIC INTEREST ORGANIZATIONS AND POLICY-MAKERS

ii 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 So-ciety'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 toxics-free 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.