Air quality
ICC has collaborated with Sensing Local, a Bengaluru-based ‘urban living lab’ that works to improve the state of the environment and public health, to map the air quality ecosystem in India. The intent is to foster partnerships among diverse stakeholders and ease the road to improving air quality at scale. The mapping will result in the sharing of insights that can inform individual and collective efforts.
The mapping exercise tapped 352 entities working in the air quality sector in India and classified them under four heads: geographic distribution, diversity of entities, sectoral focus and modes of engagement with air quality. ICC is currently in the process of developing a shared platform — the India Clean Air Connect — to help stakeholders collaborate across the ecosystem, align on goals and coordinate action in different sectors and regions.
ICC has also supported the Navi Mumbai-based Waatavaran to install low-cost air quality sensors and build local awareness on air pollution in five cities in Maharashtra: Ulhasnagar, Chandrapur, Aurangabad, Latur and Solapur.
These sensors provide citizens with access to real-time data on air quality. Additionally, the initiative builds capacity within communities to tackle air pollution by mapping their local air quality landscapes, tracking the implementation of clean air projects and reaching out to a variety of stakeholders and decision-makers to sustain local clean air movements. This programme aims to build a replicable model for air quality monitoring and advocacy for clean air.
“Our approach on air quality is about seeding new spaces,” explains says Ms Monteiro, programme lead at ICC. “As regards the players, this is an ecosystem that has mushroomed organically and very quickly across India. Those operating here have not had the time to coordinate with one another; that’s why the mapping, so that these players, who are spread all over India, can connect and inform one another about their work.”
“Air quality is an issue that requires a variety of stakeholders to work together on solutions, among them policymakers, citizens and civil society organisations,” says Ms Nath, who heads ICC. “We have to ensure reliable air quality data, systematic policy development, public awareness and, crucially, an increase in funding through philanthropy.”