What: Join the Official Opening of the 1st Blue Skies Day by the Republic of Korea.

1. Commemorative Speech (Video Message) by H.E. Moon Jae-in, President of the Republic of Korea

2. Video Message by António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres, UN Secretary-General

What: Agra, the city of Taj Mahal has a massive pollution problem. What are the steps being taken to curb it and how can we collectively fight it further? We find out in this City Session with decision makers and experts with the goal to achieve #CleanAirForAll

Guests:

• Mr Nikhil Tikaram Funde, Municipal Commissioner, Nagar Nigam Agra
• Dr Pratima Singh, Research Scientist, Lead Air Pollution at CSTEP
• Mr Chandra Bhushan, President & CEO iFOREST
• Mr Manish Mittal, District Forest Officer, Agra

Moderated by Ms Shamita Harsh, Digital Producer, Pluc

When: 7 September 2020; 15:00 IST

Join here.

What are you doing to clear the air?

Join the conversation: #CleanAirForAll

The big question: Why haven’t clean cooking interventions been successful in cleaning the air inside households, even after decades of effort? Most of those who need cleaner cooking live under the poverty threshold, there is a chronic overall lack of funding for the clean cooking sector and low levels of access to affordable solutions.

Read more here.

For the inaugural International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies on September 7, 2020, the One by One: Target 2030 campaign is highlighting clean air as a necessity to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

Contributing to over 7 million premature deaths every year, the burden of air pollution on healthcare systems threatens any achievement towards effective UHC. While air pollution is the largest environmental risk to public health globally, it is a solvable problem.

Read more here.

Double standards, legal loopholes and ‘unexplained’ errors in Australia’s air pollution data are preventing communities from accessing reliable information about the poor quality air they’re breathing.

Read the full story here.

Nairobi, 7 September 2020 - With extreme air pollution events on the rise, global efforts to reduce pollution and its effects will receive an advocacy boost when, for the first time ever, the world marks the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies on 7 September.

Adopted by a UN General Assembly Resolution in 2019, the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies – whose observance is facilitated by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) – stresses the importance of and urgent need to raise public awareness at all levels and to promote and facilitate actions to improve air quality. The Republic of Korea led global efforts to create this new International Day of Clean Air for blue skies and will host an event to start celebrations.

Read the full press release here.

Join us for this Planet Unplugged dialogue among experts and government representatives on policy and actions to tackle air pollution and mark the first year of celebrations and pave the way for enhanced global awareness and leadership for air quality globally and exchange practical and actionable solutions and strategies.

Speakers:

• Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UNEP
• Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, WHO
• H.E. Dr Cho Myung-Rae, Minister of Environment, Republic of Korea
• Dr Maria Neira, Director, Public Health, Environment and Social Determinants of Health Department, WHO
• Wanjiku Manyara, General Manager, Petroleum Institute of East Africa

Moderator:

• Helena Molin Valdes, Head of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition Secretariat

Watch a recording of the event here.

In the Kolda area in southern Senegal, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is helping to reduce air pollution and improve productivity by installing biodigesters. With a capacity of 18 cubic metres and built-in cereal and vegetable-processing units, these devices are managed by local women’s groups and can transform cow dung into a safe, environmentally-friendly cooking gas and organic fertilizer.

Read the full story here.

What: We know that air pollution is a big problem – for health, climate, food security and more. But there’s a difference between generally knowing that “we need to do something” and actually marshalling the allies, resources and power to act. Before we jump into seeking answers with big data, we need to focus on the questions that can make a difference. Our new initiative calls on the air quality and data community to join us in building a new science of questions for clean air and more.

Read more here.