Page 62 - Summer 2019 Journal

Wise Traditions Podcast Interviews
INTERVIEW WITH THEODORA SCARATO
Hilda Labrada Gore is the producer and host of our Wise Traditions podcast and a Washington, DC, co-chapter leader. An enthusiastic communicator, Hilda is passionate about wellness on every level, which is why she is known as “holistic Hilda,” She is a speaker, podcast consultant and the co-author of Podcasting Made Simple. Hilda lives in Washington, DC, with her husband, children, dog and cat. Subscribe to her blog through her website (holistichilda.com) and follow her on Instagram: @holistichilda.
HILDA LABRADA GORE: Our guest today is Theodora Scarato who is the executive director of the Environmental Health Trust (EHT). EHT is one of the leading environmental health or- ganizations working on 5G, small cells and cell phone radiation. Theodora lectures widely and coordinates international scientific programs with scientists and research institutions on the issue of 5G, cell phones and health. We have many questions about this critical topic and will see how much we can cover in this episode.
Theodora, what exactly is 5G? Who’s pro- moting it? Is it really going to give us faster In- ternet? Is that what we want? What is its impact on the environment and our health? How do we best protect ourselves from the radiation emitted from these small cell towers? How do we slow the unfettered rollout of 5G where we live? Is it true that there is going to be a big rollout in major cities in the U.S.?
THEODORA SCARATO: Yes it is. The Fed- eral Communications Commission (FCC) and Internet companies are trying to roll out 5G. They already have test cities in place. It’s go- ing to mean millions of new mini cell towers in neighborhoods.
HG: How did you get passionate about and so involved in this topic?
TS: When I first heard about 5G, I wondered what it was. I learned it is the fifth-generation technology. What it would mean for me, as a mother and homeowner, is there would be a tower, a new pole built in front of my house or added to the utility pole out front. It would have cellular antennas at the top; at the bottom would be a utility meter, a smart meter, which would have radiation coming out of it, as well as an up-to-twenty-cubic-feet electronics box near the sidewalk. What concerned me most, as a parent having kids who would climb trees and play
in the front yard, is that there would be a cell tower, a shorter tower with antennas. I began to think about that and have been researching for many years and determined it is not just that it is unsafe, it is more than that. There are so many studies showing negative effects. I knew I had to get involved.
HG: We are going to put links in our show notes to the studies you mention because we want people to know specifically what they say. Let’s go back for a second before we talk about the risks and the harm involved in 5G. Will you be more specific about what these little cell towers are? Why do they need so many? What’s the strategy with 5G?
TS: This is an intensification, meaning more and more towers in our neighborhoods, not just in the commercial areas where we shop or where the industrial buildings are. 5G is about connect- ing your cell phone to your washing machine and to all the wireless things that are in your house. They are all going to be connected. Then there are self-driving cars, which will have a lot of sensors and be connecting in real time. There are many machine-to-machine connections and phone-to-the-Cloud connections that companies are wanting in order to sell us more stuff. To make that work, the strategy is that there have to be mini cell towers in neighborhoods up to every two to ten houses. That’s what companies are saying, even though they also say that they have a 5G technology that can travel much further. Some of what we are hearing doesn’t make sense.
HG: So, it sounds like they are saying we need these little cell towers very close together and then they are also saying that maybe we don’t? I guess there is confusion, too, because you are saying these companies want to push it on
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Wise Traditions
SUMMER 2019