Thank you, Michael Lees

Friends, colleagues, family members and well-wishers recently met to express their appreciation for the work of Michael Lees, the UK’s first and foremost asbestos in schools (AiS) campaigner.

Michael Lees (center) and some of his many well-wishers.

The special event was hosted by the Joint Union Asbestos Committee (JUAC) at the headquarters of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) in central London.

Michael’s involvement with asbestos began when his schoolteacher wife Gina was diagnosed with the asbestos cancer, mesothelioma. Following her death on September 7, 2000, Michael set off on a quest to understand how a teacher could die from an industrial disease. What he uncovered fueled his determination to rid our schools of a toxic substance that was endangering the lives of those who studied and worked in them.

You can read a full blog posting about Michael and the event on the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat website.