Clean Air Day to return in June 2018

Organisers of the first National Clean Air Day have announced that the nationwide awareness raising campaign will return on 21 June 2018.

Spearheaded by the behaviour change charity Global Action Plan, the 2017 National Clean Air Day took place on 15 June and saw a host of activities taking place in towns and cities across the UK, coordinating action from local authorities, charities, schools and businesses.

Clean Air Day 2017 Awards – Held at HOME, Manchester

According to Global Action Plan, the day saw over 200 associated events as well as gaining significant media coverage, with over 550 press, radio and TV features and more than 28,000 tweets helping to raise awareness of issues relating to air quality.

In 2018, Clean Air Day will drop the ‘National’ from its title, which organisers claim will give it a clearer identity, and also enable it to be widened out beyond the UK.

In a report highlighting the impact of the day in 2017, Global Action Plan noted: “National Clean Air Day was a huge collaborative effort between one hundred supporter organisations and many thousands of individuals up and down the country. Their passion for helping their neighbours, families and colleagues to act on air pollution led them to organise press interviews, walking buses, debates, street parties, cycle rides and much more.”

The report added: “Everyone who participated in National Clean Air Day contributed to its success. Together, National Clean Air Day participants have enlightened millions of people, triggered political pledges and inspired people to cut pollution, protecting young and old in our local communities.”

2017 event

Activities highlighted in the report include Birmingham city council’s campaign targeted at businesses as well as a community event at the University of Birmingham, showcasing a range of projects to improve air quality.

Other activities involved Transport for Greater Manchester which ran workshops in schools alongside social media adverts offering advice on how residents can improve air quality.

In Nottingham city council employees pledged to take action on air pollution and were offered test drives of electric and hybrid fleet vehicles as part of the Go Ultra Low Nottingham programme to encourage the uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles. Hundreds more people pledged to take air pollution busting actions at the intu Victoria Shopping Centre.

A range of Scotland-specific resources and messages were developed in line with the update on the Clean Air For Scotland Strategy, that was also published on 15 June. At least 60 public and private sector organisations in Scotland participated in National Clean Air Day, Global Action Plan has said.

Chris Large, senior partner at Global Action Plan will be presenting some of the findings from the first Clean Air Day at the National Air Quality Conference in London on 23 November. For more details, click here.

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National Clean Air Day