My mom died of pancreatic cancer at 56 a few months before my first son was born, an aggressive cancer I would never wish on anyone.

She spent her life as a teacher in one of the most polluted areas in the state - Curtis Bay, Maryland. As a scientist I am thoroughly convinced that this fact contributed to her cancer.

I remember the evening as a child eating dinner and her casually mentioning an explosion that happened near her school. They heard a loud bang then saw droplets falling from the sunny sky. As they fell their cars were marked with pock marks.

Within an hour, professionally dressed men arrived and offered them a check if they did not report what had happened. This was what the community now calls "the day it rained rust."

I have since spent many years supporting communities in understanding contamination risk and cleanup at Superfund sites. Places that are so contaminated they require federal action and attention to hold polluters accountable.

These were other companies that slid their mistakes under the rug in hopes that no one would notice, what we we call greenwashing today.

Large defense contractors who essentially dumped their waste on the backyard. DDT manufacturers who spilled a little here and a little there. Let's not even talk about the Dioxin and PFAS disasters affecting the lives of thousands.

What I've learned is that if companies can find the easy way out, they will. That motivated me to start Little Green Myths to bring forward the greenwashing happening around us and to bring forward ways to address it.