"It is one world. And it’s in our care. For the first time in the history of humanity, for the first time in 500 million years, one species has the future in the palm of its hands. "
- David Attenborough, author, biologist, and natural historian
The international day for clean air for blue skies was launched in 2019 by the United Nations General Assembly and is celebrated on September 7th each year. The intention of this day is to bring together people from all over the world to combat air pollution, whose side effects create a whole slew of health problems. Air pollution is a two-fold problem that affects us health-wise and climate-wise. Air pollution is a general term used to describe fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide that penetrate deep into our lungs and once in our body they get into our bloodstream which can lead to serious health issues, including, stroke, chronic respiratory disease, lung cancer and heart attacks. Ground level ozone can be generated when sunlight mixes with various pollutants, this can lead to asthma and chronic respiratory illness. Short-lived pollutants are linked with warming of the planet. They can persist for a few days or a few decades.
Did you know that 80% of metropolitan populations are exposed to air quality levels that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) acceptable air quality limits? With 99% of the world’s population breathing air that exceeds the WHO’s acceptable limit, the highest exposures levels can be found in low and middle-class countries. Of the 6,000 cities that monitor air quality levels in 117 countries, air pollution is still a widely unaddressed issue. In 2011 WHO released a new reporting database that records ground monitoring data for particulate matter. This program measures annual mean concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matters of diameters equal or smaller than 10µm (10 micrometers). In 2022 it registered a 6x increase in pollution in an additional 2,000 cities/human settlements from the program’s introduction in 2011. By reducing air pollution, we can begin to see an immediate improvement in air quality health and climate issues.
As members of the design industry, we can contribute to improving our air quality in various ways:
Petition your government to monitor air quality and identify sources of air pollution.
Support transition to clean energy usage.
Design safe and affordable public transport systems and pedestrian and bicycle friendly trails and pathways, then utilize them.
Include air quality considerations in your designs.
Adding Natural Light
Adding natural Ventilation
Adding an Atrium or Courtyard with plants
Adding a Green Roof
Adding a Green Wall
URBAN AGRICULTURE
2016 | Orlando, FL
