Chauncy Wadsworth '26

My name is Chauncy Wadsworth. I’m a rising Junior and Political Science major at Haverford who hails from the Chicago area. This summer, thanks to funding from the Liberal Arts in the Workplace Grant, I worked for the Illinois lobbying firm Progressive Public Affairs, working in both city and state politics. 

During my time at Progressive Public Affairs, I conducted in-depth research, writing reports that may serve as a base for future policies. I also shadowed my boss as he lobbied important local (Chicago) and state (Illinois) government leaders. One of the first things that struck me about these conversations was just how informal they were. Conversations surrounding policy often happened over the phone or in very quick in-person meetings. 

Most of the topics I addressed in my reports had to do with important policy changes and shortfalls within the framework of Chicago and Illinois politics. While I enjoyed writing these reports, the focus of my internship was mainly centered around a separate project. This “personal project” allowed me to choose a policy that I was passionate about and lobby for it in states around the country. For my project, I chose chemical reform policy, with a focus on banning many of the hazardous chemicals that still populate American cosmetic products. These chemicals are allowed to be in cosmetic products because of a glaring lack of oversight on the part of the FDA, who aren’t even allowed to approve cosmetic ingredients before they are put on American shelves. In the past few years, progressive states like California, Washington and Maryland have been making up for this federal deficiency by passing their own chemical bans. My project attempted to build on their success by banning chemicals or improving existing bans in progressive states like Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan and, of course, Pennsylvania. This effort led to the creation of my organization, the Fragrance Regulations and Environmental Safety Hub (FRESH). FRESH is likely to co-sponsor chemical bans in states like Colorado, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Michigan and Illinois.

Of course, calling FRESH an organization is a bit far-fetched, especially considering the fact that it’s only me. However, one thing I learned during my time working at Progressive Public Affairs (which is also a one man operation), is that one person can get quite a lot done on their own with a little perseverance.