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Childhood

lead poisoning is preventable.

Childhood

lead poisoning is preventable.

We work with governments and industry around the world to stop lead exposure at its source.

3.5M

deaths caused by lead exposure every year

More than

1 in 3

children have lead poisoning globally

Childhood

lead poisoning is preventable.

We work with governments and industry around the world to stop lead exposure at its source.

More than

1 in 3

children have lead poisoning globally

→

Childhood

lead poisoning is preventable.

We work with governments and industry around the world to stop lead exposure at its source.

3.5M

deaths caused by lead exposure every year

More than

1 in 3

children have lead poisoning globally

why it matters

Children with lead poisoning suffer permanent brain damage and reduced cognitive ability – impacting their health, wellbeing, and future potential.

Lead is extraordinarily toxic, and the vast majority of the 1.1 billion children and adolescents worldwide affected by lead poisoning live in low and middle income countries. Approximately half of the world’s countries do not have lead paint regulation.

Lead exposure accounts for an estimated one fifth of the learning gap between low- and middle-income countries and the global average. Lead poisoning also causes health problems later in life, including cardiovascular damage, that result in approximately 3.5 million deaths around the world every year.

Learn more

Lead Exposure Sources

Paint

Unregulated in approximately half of countries worldwide

Spices

Lead chromate, a vivid yellow pigment, is often added to turmeric in South Asia to enhance colour.

Traditional

eyeliners

Powdered eyeliners, such as kohl, surma, or tiro, are often made from lead sulphide rock.

Water

Lead can enter drinking water through pipes, fittings, and other water system components.

Used lead acid batteries

Informal and low-standard recycling processes are increasingly recognised as a major source of lead exposure.

Lead Exposure Sources

Paint

Unregulated in approximately half of countries worldwide

Spices

Lead chromate, a vivid yellow pigment, is often added to turmeric in South Asia to enhance colour.

Traditional

Eyeliners

Powdered eyeliners, such as kohl, surma, or tiro, are often made from lead sulphide rock.

Water

Lead can enter drinking water through pipes, fittings, and other water system components.

Used Lead Acid Batteries

Informal and low-standard recycling processes are increasingly recognised as a major source of lead exposure.

Lead Exposure Sources

Paint

Unregulated in approximately half of countries worldwide

Spices

Lead chromate, a vivid yellow pigment, is often added to turmeric in South Asia to enhance colour.

Traditional

Eyeliners

Powdered eyeliners, such as kohl, surma, or tiro, are often made from lead sulphide rock.

Water

Lead can enter drinking water through pipes, fittings, and other water system components.

Used Lead Acid Batteries

Informal and low-standard recycling processes are increasingly recognised as a major source of lead exposure.

what we do

Detect. Regulate. Eliminate.

LEEP works in more than 50 countries to remove lead from paint and other sources of exposure.

Detect

Conduct country-level studies to detect lead in paint, spices, traditional eyeliners, and more.

Regulate

Support governments to regulate levels of lead.

Eliminate

Work alongside industry to eliminate lead exposure at its source.

What we do

Eliminating Lead Paint in Malawi: A Progress Story

our impact

Protecting more than 100 million children from lead exposure

We estimate that our first 40 paint programs are on track to prevent more than 100 million children from being poisoned from lead paint in their homes over the next 35 years. And our work is still expanding.

Since our founding in 2020, LEEP has supported eight countries to adopt government regulations to limit lead in paint, and over half the lead market in more than 20 countries is now taking steps to switch to lead-free paints. LEEP has completed 38 paint studies, along with 20 studies on spices, eyeliners, plastics, or water, and we are applying what we’ve learned from paint to these other sources.

See our 2025 report

News & Stories

Progress and findings

Aug 14, 2026

Announcing LEEP’s Opportunity Fund Grantees

We are excited to announce the first two rounds of grantees who will further inform our work on paint, traditional cosmetics, battery recycling, lead levels in water and cookware, information campaigns, and more.

Following a paint study in DRC, LEEP conducted multiple workshop with the government to support the regulatory process.

Mar 16, 2026

New Research Drives Regulatory Action in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

LEEP in partnership with the Office Congolais de Contrôle (OCC), the government conformity assessment agency under the Ministry of Commerce, conducted two studies to…

Feb 24, 2026

2025 in Review: Advancing Lead Elimination at Scale

2025 was a year of remarkable growth and foundational progress for LEEP.

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Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP) is a nonprofit with federal tax-exempt status as a public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code. (EIN: 87-3016729.) Contributions to LEEP are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

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