Courtesy of Lindsay Dahl
Minnesota has long been a leader in environmental health, and few people know that story better than Lindsay Dahl. A Minnesota native and St. Olaf graduate, Dahl has spent more than two decades advocating for stronger protections against harmful chemicals, helping pass more than 30 state and federal laws—including playing a key role in the most significant update to federal chemical safety legislation in 40 years. We spoke with Dahl about her new book, “Cleaning House: The Fight to Rid Our Homes of Toxic Chemicals,” the power of finding common ground, and why change often starts close to home.
What inspired your passion for environmental health?
I’ve been an environmentalist since before I could really spell the word. I went to the School of Environmental Studies, a public interdisciplinary high school in Apple Valley, then studied environmental science and political science at St. Olaf, and I grew up running around the woods with my friends. After college, I realized not everyone is as passionate about protecting a river from toxic chemicals, but people do care about toxic chemicals in their couches, makeup, and pots and pans. Environmental health let me bridge the connection between the materials we use to make products in our homes and more traditional pollution from manufacturing; it’s all connected.
What has been a career highlight for you?
Courtesy of HarperCollins
Having a front row seat to Minnesota becoming the first state in the country to ban BPA [Bisphenol A] in baby bottles and sippy cups is a win that still gives me chills. It was proof that if you write a smart law, you can protect every single kid in the state without anyone having to become a chemistry major first. Fast-forward a couple decades, and I got to help pass the first update to federal cosmetic safety law in over 80 years while leading the mission team at Counter (formerly Beautycounter). And last year at Ritual, where I’m their chief impact officer, we helped pass the first law in the country requiring prenatal supplement brands to actually show their heavy metal test results to the public.
Above all these legislative wins, publishing my first book, “Cleaning House” (HarperCollins), is a highlight. It’s a coming-of-age story, part industry expose, and I wanted to write it in a way that is a true story, not a depressing book that makes you feel bad. I feature the stories of amazing activists and the work we have done to make real progress on the issue of toxic chemical pollution. If you liked the movie “Erin Brockovich” or the show “The West Wing,” you’ll love the book.
Why has Minnesota been a leader in chemical safety?
Minnesotans are fundamentally sensible people who grew up jumping off docks into lakes we actually want to keep swimming in. This isn’t a red or blue issue up here — nobody wants flame retardants in their kid’s pajamas, regardless of who they voted for. We’ve also got this incredible civic muscle memory. I’ve asked thousands of Minnesotans to call their legislators over the years, and they just… do it. That’s rare, and it’s why real change keeps happening here first.
What’s the key to building bipartisan support to pass 30+ laws?
I say the word “bipartisan” early and often; people need permission to feel like this isn’t a fight. And frankly, everyone is exhausted by division right now. People are hungry for something they can agree on for once, and environmental health, clean living, whatever you want to call it, is just that. Then I find the door in: Is she a new mom drowning in confusing product labels? A dad in a rural town whose well water isn’t safe to drink? Toxic chemicals don’t check your voter registration, and once people see that, the politics kind of melts away.
Courtesy of Lindsay Dahl
What’s one simple step every household can take to create a healthier home?
Stop trying to overhaul your entire house overnight—that way lies burnout, not health. Instead, learn three labels. In the back of “Cleaning House,” I break it down by category: EWG Verified for beauty and personal care, EPA Safer Choice or Made Safe for cleaning products, and Clean Label Project Certified for supplements. Memorize those three, and you’ve just outsourced the hardest part of the research to people who do it full time.
“Cleaning House: The Fight to Rid Our Homes of Toxic Chemicals” by Lindsay Dahl (HarperCollins, $25) is available at bookstores now. Visit Dahl’s Substack, The Environmental Health Brief, for her articles and more.
