Denise Antolini, IUCN WCEL Deputy Chair
Professor/Former Associate Dean for Academic Affairs (2011-2019), William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa

Scott Fulton, President, Environmental Law Institute

In 2016, then-U.S. President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency in the city of Flint, Michigan. For years, city residents had been drinking water with dangerously elevated levels of lead, which is hazardous to all and can cause serious neurological damage to children. In order to save money, Flint switched its water source from the nearby city of Detroit to a local river. Agents of each responsible institution failed to investigate subsequent clear signals of trouble with local water quality.