Best known for her book, Silent Spring, Rachel Carson was a true daughter of Pennsylvania, launching the modern environment movement with her powerful writing about nature and how humans change the natural world. Her family home, in Springdale, Pennsylvania, is now the site of the Rachel Carson Homestead.

According the Homestead’s website, “It is here in southwestern Pennsylvania that this little girl, who grew up to become ‘one of the most influential people of the 20th century,’ according to TIME magazine, developed her love or nature. The youngest and only child of three to attend college, Rachel Carson was a published writer by age 10. In addition she began a life-long love of the ocean - perhaps inspired by her daily view of the great Allegheny River. As a young adult, Rachel went on to finish degrees in biology and marine biology.” Rachel Carson is a graduate of Pittsburgh’s Chatham University, home of the Rachel Carson Institute.

Last month, the Institute and the Garden Club of Allegheny County held the Pittsburgh premier of the biographical film, “A Sense of Wonder,” featuring Kaiulani Lee’s portrayal of Rachel Carson's life and work. The film was followed by a panel discussion about Carson’s impact on the environmental and public policy.

PennFuture’s Joylette Portlock interviewed the other panelists about Carson, the film and the state of the environmental movement. This podcast includes interviews with Chatham University’s Nancy Gift, acting director of the Rachel Carson Institute; Fiona Fisher, director of communications at the Rachel Carson Homestead; and Dave Cooper, who presented the Mountaintop Removal Roadshow.