Putnam Author Alden Wicker Awarded the Rachel Carson Environment Book Award for Reporting on the Environment
G.P. Putnam’s Sons author Alden Wicker, photo © Justin N. Lane.
The Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ) announced its 23rd Annual SEJ Awards winners and G.P. Putnam’s Sons author Alden Wicker earned the Rachel Carson Environment Book Award for Reporting on the Environment for her book TO DYE FOR: How Toxic Fashion Is Making Us Sick — and How We Can Fight Back.
According to the judges, “Sustainable fashion expert Alden Wicker’s provocative ‘To Dye For’ is a sobering look at the chemical cocktail in our wardrobes. Using the 2011 case of new airline uniforms that promptly made their wearers sick as a launchpad for her investigation, Wicker details the longstanding, industry-wide use of synthetic dyes and other chemicals that are potentially toxic, and largely unregulated. In the spirit of Rachel Carson’s ‘Silent Spring,’ this well-researched and timely exposé has far-reaching implications to change an industry. A must-read, not only for fashionistas, but for all of us who strive to live a less-toxic life.”
Ms. Wicker is an award-winning journalist, sustainable-fashion expert, and founder and editor-in-chief of EcoCult. She’s published investigative pieces for The New York Times, Vogue, Wired, and has been interviewed for the BBC, NPR, Reuters, Fortune, CBC, and more. In 2021, Wicker won the American Society of Journalists and Authors Award for business reporting.
The SEJ Awards stand as the world’s largest and most comprehensive environmental journalism competition. This year, judges and subject-matter experts from the field, comprising volunteer independent journalists and professors, read, listened, and viewed 532 entries across 10 categories. Awards, for material published last year, are given for works whose inspiration, image, and literary excellence best represent the reality and spirit of environmental journalism. To view all of the SEJ Awards winners, click here.
Congratulations to Ms. Wicker, her editor, Michelle Howry and everyone at Putnam.