Articles & Resources

Understanding Winter Air: How Cold Weather Affects What We Breathe

Many of us think of the summer months being full of air quality alerts - from wildfires to fireworks to Ozone Action Days. Warm weather can also bring pollen, humidity, and other factors that make breathing more difficult for many. But is winter air any cleaner?‍

How Can the Olympics Impact Air Quality? A Beijing Success Story

Everyday, the 2024 Olympics are carrying inspiration from Paris around the world, including to our U.S.-based JustAir team. We’ve been inspired by the athletes’ amazing feats, of course. But because we think about air quality a lot, we can’t help but be inspired when an actual Olympics x air quality success story crosses our purview.

Ground-Level Ozone: What to Know & How to Stay Safe

Ground-level ozone forms when volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) from sources like vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions react in the presence of sunlight and heat. This reaction produces ozone, which can cause respiratory problems, aggravate asthma, and reduce lung function, particularly in vulnerable populations.

Wildfire Smoke: What to Know & How to Stay Safe

Wildfires are increasingly common due to a combination of factors, including climate change, which leads to hotter and drier conditions conducive to fire spread. Human activities such as land-use changes and fire suppression practices also play significant roles in wildfire frequency and intensity.

Enhancing Air Quality through Nature-Based Solutions

Environmental infrastructure within city planning is a keystone element of sustainable cities. As we move toward a more sustainable and equitable future, ensuring improved quality of life for all people has to be at the forefront of these plans. This means prioritizing the voices of community members, collecting and measuring data on proposed changes, and increasingly, incorporating nature-based solutions into city planning.

From Grassroots to Policy: Stories of Environmental Change

The push for structural change often begins at the grassroots level with local leaders and community members identifying a problem, raising awareness, then acting to remedy an issue as change agents. This is especially true in the environmental justice landscape where citizens are often in unique positions to observe immediate impacts of pollution at a local level.

Breathe Easy: Tips for Improving Indoor Air Quality

Although outdoor air quality is our focus at JustAir, we get a lot of questions about indoor air. Through this article, we aim to inform individuals and families on common sources of indoor air pollutants and on how to stay safe whether you’re inside or outside.

EPA Strengthens National Air Quality Standards: What It Means for You and Your Community

The EPA's new PM 2.5 standards is expected to save thousands of lives over the next decade. Here's what the new ruling means for you, your community, and the JustAir dashboard.

Taking Action: An Interview with Dearborn's Department of Public Health's Founding Director

The City of Dearborn is a JustAir partner taking proactive measures for public health. We sat down with Ali Abazeed, the founding director of the City’s Department of Public Health, to learn more about their innovative community clean air project.

What’s in the Air? Common Pollutants in the Air we Breathe

Become familiar with the most common air pollutants and understand big picture ways to stay safe.

Donate to an Environmental Justice Organization This Giving Tuesday

Use your year-end gifts to support environmental justice partners fighting for clean air and a better world.

JustAir Co-hosts Community Workshop in Grand Rapids

On June 29, while Canadian wildfire smoke spread across the Midwest, residents gathered for an air quality workshop. Residents left with more information on air quality and how JustAirs data can keep their communities safe.

Black Leaders in the Fight for Environmental Justice

As we celebrate Black History Month, it's important to recognize the significant contributions of Black Americans in the fight for environmental justice. From advocating for clean air and water to pushing for more equitable access to green spaces, Black leaders have played a critical role in the environmental movement.

Real-Time Air Quality Monitoring: A Step Toward Cleaner, Healthier Communities

Air pollution is a major global concern, especially in underserved and minority communities. However, the live data and alert systems built into real-time air quality monitoring systems are inspiring change for communities.

Community Spotlight: Kareem Scales

Get to know our community partner, Kareem Scales. Scales is a Civil Rights activist, community advocate, and grass roots organizer. He focuses on creating transformational change in BIPOC communities centering residents in the urban core that have historically been disproportionately impacted by systemic and unjust practices.

Does Your City Have High Asthma Rates? The Contributors And What Cities Can Do

Asthma is one of the most chronic diseases affecting people living in cities in the United States. Discover the main contributors and what can your city do to reduce asthma rates.

What’s the History of Air Monitoring and How Can We Create a Better Future?

Staying Safe When Air Quality is Poor

Poor air quality can stem from natural events like wildfires, hurricanes, or even floods. But in too many cases, it’s a result of human actions, such as the use of fossil fuels for our cars, factories, and homes. So, if you get a JustAir text alert saying the air quality near you is poor, what do you do?

How Air Quality Affects Health at a Local Level & What You Can Do About It

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