URGENT ACTION NEEDED TO ADDRESS SOUTH ASIA’S AIR POLLUTION HEALTH EMERGENCY

३२ शुक्रबार , श्रावण २०८१|३ महिना अगाडि

Kathmandu, Nepal – 15 August 2024 – Leading regional and international public health and environmental scientists gather to push for progress in global pollution hotspot – seeking to drive action that tackles hazardous air pollution in South Asia, to improve public health across the region.

Crisis in air pollution hotspot is fixable, say experts, and will deliver economic, climate, as well as health and social benefits.

Toxic air in South Asia has risen more than 50% since the start of this century: wiping out more than 10% of gross domestic product in the region and shortening the average lifespan in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan by five years, versus four months for the average American. Exposure and vulnerability to pollution are greatest among those living in poverty – including those working long hours outdoors, communities living close to landfills or factories, or families unable to afford clean alternatives to solid fuels for cooking, lighting, or heating.
Solutions to the public health crisis exist: with pollution in China decreasing more than 40% in the last decade.

Register here for a briefing from global experts in health and air pollution at tomorrow Thursday (15 August, 10:20am Nepal Standard Time).

Speakers are Michal Krzyzanowski, Visiting Professor at Imperial College London; Jill Baumgartner, Professor at McGill University; Om Kurmi, Associate Professor at Coventry University; and Narayan Babu Dhital, Assistant Professor at Tribhuvan University.

Download the full press release here.

(Please note that all materials are under embargo until noon Thursday 15 August.)

About ICIMOD

The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region stretches 3,500km across Asia, spanning eight countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. Encompassing high-altitude mountain ranges, mid-hills, and plains, the zone is vital for the food, water, and energy security of up to two billion people and is a habitat for countless irreplaceable species. It is also acutely fragile, and vulnerable to the impacts of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), based in Kathmandu, Nepal, is an international organisation established in 1983, that is working to make this critical region greener, more inclusive and climate resilient. For more information, read our Strategy 2030 and explore our website.

For media inquiries, please contact:

ICIMOD (Kathmandu)
Annie Dare, Head of Communications
Raz Tuladhar, Media Officer
Anshu Pandey, Senior Media Associate
Email: media@icimod.org

For information on the briefing, please contact:
Sushmita Kunwar, Communications Officer, ICIMOD
Email: sushmita.kunwar@icimod.org

URGENT ACTION NEEDED TO ADDRESS SOUTH ASIA’S AIR POLLUTION HEALTH EMERGENCY

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