Citizen scientists join forces to fight air pollution. Miguel Vissers breaks down the research paper

Miguel Vissers breaks down the peer-reviewed paper titled "Improving air pollution awareness of the general public through citizen science approach" in the Sustainable Horizons journal.

Paper link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science...

Transcript
Imagine a world where communities could come together to address air pollution. Well, that’s exactly what happened in Guildford, UK. The findings of this project were published in a paper by Abhijit et al. in Sustainable Horizons. Using affordable sensors, researchers measured air pollution—including carbon dioxide and particulate matter—both indoors and outdoors.

Spoiler alert: The results were quite eye-opening. CO₂ levels rose significantly during crowded events, and particulate matter increased due to dust resuspension and ingress from the outside.

While the results are important and fascinating, it’s the method that truly stands out. This innovative research employed a citizen science approach, which aims to incorporate citizens into the scientific process. Two organizations partnered for this effort: the Guildford Living Lab, led by researchers from the University of Surrey, and Zero Carbon Guildford, an NGO formed by local citizens and organizations aiming to reduce carbon emissions.

The collaboration was an impressive co-development. Researchers contributed technical expertise, while the locals provided invaluable local knowledge, ensuring the study reflected the real-life conditions in Guildford.

In addition to the data collection, public engagement was a key element of the project. For example, the live air pollution data tool (LAPD) was developed, providing real-time insights into air pollution. This system was guided by community feedback to ensure the information was communicated transparently and understandably.

The project also included an interactive quiz at the Zero Carbon Guildford building, which educated visitors about the daily impact of air pollution and encouraged habit changes. This initiative even inspired new citizen-led efforts, such as measuring air pollution at schools and busy roads—creating an incredible feedback loop that spread knowledge, ideas, and action.

In my opinion, this collaboration was a success. I highly recommend reading the paper, as it contains many fascinating results I couldn’t cover in this video.

For me, this study demonstrates how citizen science can empower both citizens and researchers. It makes air monitoring and other critical ideas accessible, inclusive, and inspiring. Most importantly, it puts the power to create change back into the hands of the people. Considering the scale of the air pollution crisis, this empowerment is not just valuable—it’s necessary.

So, I say: power to the people. Let’s work together to drive meaningful change and create a world where everyone can breathe cleaner air.

📱 Join our community on:
➔ LinkedIn:   / cs-media-lab  
————————————————————————
🔎 Relevant Hashtags: #CivicSciTV #SciComm #civicsciencenews #civicscience #commscicomm
————————————————————————
Get more analysis, relevant links, and related coverage across video, audio, and print by visiting the Civic Science Media Lab Terminal: ➔ https://civicsciencemedia.org
————————————————————————
© CivicSciTV Network. Any reproduction or republication of this video or audio, in whole or in part, is allowed provided proper citations are included.
————————————————————————
🌟 Subscription Link: @CivicSciTV