All too often we take the air we breathe and share for granted. Only when we breathe very polluted air , when we can smell and see the pollution , do we realize that the air around us is a precious good that needs to be protected, much like the water we drink. On the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies on September 7th , let’s take a moment to reflect on the air we breathe. What happens when we breathe in polluted air? Air pollution affects every organ in the human body , can cause asthma, cancer and many other diseases, contributes to the climate crisis and also hurts the wallet: health costs and lost work days due to air pollution-related illness are estimated at or above 20% of GDP in 10 countries of the Pan-European region. Globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that a staggering 7 million deaths are caused by air pollution every single year . Alas, we are not the only ones to feel its devastating effects: air pollution also causes major environme...
