These canvases reveal Carson’s multiple challenges when advocating for change, not only did she need to find the evidence of the damage of pesticides, but she also had to collate that evidence and then use it to convince the public to fight for change. Her solution of taking the ‘road less travelled’ is not an easy gift to offer an audience, it’s harder and more complicated than their existing ordinary world.

So how did she make change happen?

• Carson really understood the stories people were already telling themselves and therefore could collate the evidence she would need to change their minds. By mixing storytelling with indisputable facts, she created an evocative image of the potential for future harm that gave people something to rally against.
  
  
• She didn’t stop the story there. Humans react better to rebirth stories than we do to tragedies because they outline a positive pathway for change. Throughout her thesis, Carson argues for an alternative ending, suggesting it is our responsibility to choose the path of caution, and explore biological solutions based on careful research and ecological understanding.
  
  
• She also highlights and celebrates the fact that more researchers will join the quest to replace pesticides with a smarter option – this was rare to do before the advent of the environmental movement and went a long way towards creating a sense of allyship and momentum around an overlooked issue.