Carolyn Salminen Konheim (born Carolyn Irene Salminen) (1938 – 2019) was an American environmental activist and consultant, based in New York.
Carolyn Konheim | |
|---|---|
| Born | Carolyn Irene Salminen January 20, 1938 New York |
| Died | November 25, 2019 (aged 81) New York |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | environmental activist, consultant |
Early life and education
editKonheim was born in Queens, the daughter of Carl H. Salminen and Irene Ahti Salminen. Her father was a Brooklyn-born commercial architect.[1] She earned a bachelor's degree in history at Skidmore College, with further studies at Columbia University.[2] She taught history at White Plains High School before she married in 1962.[3]
Career
editKonheim was a mother of young children, living in New York City, when she became concerned about the city's air quality. She and Hazel Henderson founded Citizens for Clean Air in 1964. Konheim served as communications director for Mayor John Lindsay's Department of Air Resources from 1967 to 1971.[4][5] From 1976 to 1977 she served on the state's Department of Environmental Conservation.[6] She ran the New York Scientists Committee for Public Information, providing scientific and economic talking points on environmental issues.[7] She chaired the Permanent Citizens’ Advisory Committee of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Her work led to changes in New York State laws regarding industrial emissions, and later to automotive emissions.[2][8]
With her second husband, she worked successfully against the city's Westway scheme, citing environmental hazards. Later Konheim and Ketcham founded Community Consulting Services, and worked as environmental-impact consultants for urban and transportation projects.[9] Kornheim advocated for congestion pricing, bicycle-friendly streets, and pedestrian malls.[8][10]
In the 1980s, she was a consultant in support of a trash incinerator projects in Brooklyn, Pennsauken,[11] Kenosha,[12] and other sites,[13] reporting that harmful by-products like dioxin could be handled with the right technology, regulation, and oversight.[14][15] In the 1990s, Konheim was president of Women for Affirmative Action, a lobbying organization representing over four thousand woman-owned businesses in the New York metropolitan area.[16]
Personal life
editKonheim married twice. She married businessman B. Brand "Bud" Konheim in 1962;[3] they had two sons, Eric (who died in 1991) and Alex.[17] The Konheims divorced in 1978. In 1984, she married automotive engineer Brian Ketcham, who also worked on air pollution. The couple lived in Brooklyn. She died in 2019, after a decade with Parkinson's disease and dementia.[2]
References
edit- ^ "Carl H. Salminen, Architect in Queens". The New York Times. November 16, 1962. p. 31 – via ProQuest.
- ^ a b c Roberts, Sam (2019-12-04). "Carolyn Konheim, Foe of All That Befouled a City, Dies at 81". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-12-24.
- ^ a b "B. Brand Konheim Marries Miss Carolyn Irene Salminen". The New York Times. April 16, 1962. p. 25 – via ProQuest.
- ^ "Queens Woman to Give Answers to Pollution". Daily News. 1967-03-29. p. 823. Retrieved 2019-12-24 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Bird, David (September 30, 1970). "Smokewatchers Help Fight Pollution". The New York Times. p. 47 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Bird, David (May 30, 1977). "Air-Quality-Monitoring System For New York Called 'Unhealthy'". The New York Times. p. 19 – via ProQuest.
- ^ "Round-Trip Toll for E. River Bridges?". Daily News. 1975-07-01. p. 166. Retrieved 2019-12-24 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Komanoff, Charles (2019-12-02). "In Memoriam: 'Do All The Good You Can' — The Life of Urban Ecology Pioneer Carolyn Konheim". Streetsblog New York City. Retrieved 2019-12-24.
- ^ "Fugheddaboudit! You Can't Beat Brooklyn's Transportation Thinkers". Transportation Alternatives Magazine. Retrieved 2019-12-24.
- ^ South, Nigel, ed. (2017-07-05). Green Criminology. Routledge. pp. 385–386. ISBN 978-1-351-56496-0.
- ^ Hefler, Jan (1986-05-14). "Incinerator Report Challenged". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 94. Retrieved 2019-12-24 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Engels, Dave (1989-10-19). "Report: Incineration Can Be Monitored". Kenosha News. p. 9. Retrieved 2019-12-24 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Furse, Jane (1982-08-07). "Incinerator Pollsters Had Approached Town". The Central New Jersey Home News. p. 3. Retrieved 2019-12-24 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Walsh, Edward J.; Warland, Rex (2010-11-01). Don't Burn it Here: Grassroots Challenges to Trash Incinerators. Penn State Press. pp. 8–9. ISBN 978-0-271-04219-0.
- ^ Barbanel, Josh (May 23, 1985). "As Thousands Protest, City Backs Trash Plant". The New York Times. p. B3 – via ProQuest.
- ^ "Women Lobby for Affirmative Action". Women's Business Exclusive. Jun 30, 1996. p. 3 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Zaczkiewicz, Arthur; Feitelberg, Rosemary (2019-04-14). "Bud Konheim, Nicole Miller's Chief Executive Officer, Dies at 84 After Biking Fall". WWD. Retrieved 2019-12-24.
