Reference Girl $5,000 Summer Matching Grant

Reference Girl is a collaborative project 

Radiation is dangerous--there is no safe level of exposure--the higher the exposure level, the higher the level of disease, however, even an exposure too small to measure may, sometimes, result in fatal cancer. *

Because of this, radiation is regulated by the government if it is man-made. Radiation and radioactivity are primarily made by splitting atoms in nuclear weapons and nuclear energy.  Nuclear medicine is also regulated. Today the exposure from a regulated activity is measured on a "stand-in" -- like a crash test dummy, but in this case it is an individual known as Reference Man. Every single evaluation made under radiation regulations assume that the exposure is to Reference Man.

The definition of Reference Man makes it clear that he is an adult, a white male who has an urban industrial lifestyle. He doesn't drink milk or eat eggs from his own domestic animals, or feed himself from a garden. His water comes from a regulated supply. 

But, this means the most impacted people are left out--invisible. Reference Girl Project was given a big lift in 2024 when GRIP CEO Mary Olson coauthored a UN report with Dr Amanda M Nichols, Gender and Ionizing Radiation: Towards a New Research Agenda Addressing Disproportionate Harm . The report contains many citations and discussion of ongoign research that continues to show that female bodies are more harmed than male bodies, and children are more harmed than adults. This means that little girls are the most harmed post-birth life phase. 

In order to deliver protection of human life--it is vital that ALL of the human lifecycle be protected. The cycle cannot continue if any one part is lost. Little girls are an inextricable link that will produce future generations--or not!

HELP US create a new model, based on those most-harmed. Support our work to build Reference Girl.

THANK YOU.