Mother raises money for pollution absorbing statue

Rosamund Kissi-Debrah, the mother of a nine-year-old girl who died from air pollution is raising money for a memorial sculpture that will also absorb air pollution. 

The sculpture would be displayed in Mountsfield Park in Lewisham, where Ella often played as a child. 

Rosamund is hoping to raise £75,000 for the artwork, which will show Ella’s sleeping face surrounded by flowing forms inspired by flight and nature. More than £3,000 has already been raised for the project. 

The sculpture will be made from a material called NOXTEKTM which absorbs nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution. 

It will be made by Sydenham-based sculptor and scientist Dr. Jasmine Prasdissitto. Jasmine has spent the last 5 years pioneering this material for sculpture following her own experience with her son. Made by a company called Alsitek and specially mixed for the artist, it can absorb 15% by weight of  NO2 pollution i.e. a 3Kg sculpture can clean an average-sized room for 60 years.

The sculpture will be at eye level in a planted field of wild meadow flowers intended to bring biodiversity back to the city, help sequester some of the pollution from the local roads, and thus create a space for quiet contemplation in a busy urban setting.

Rosamund said: ‘Whether it’s a school cake sale or a sponsored scoot we’d be extremely grateful if people in South London wanted to get involved and help raise awareness of just how terrible air pollution is in this area, at the same time as raising funds for the sculpture.

‘We need to have more conversations about air pollution to help us understand how bad it is for our health.’

To donate, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/first-breathe-for-our-future-ancestor

In related news, late last year Air Quality News interviewed Rosamund Kissi-Debrah following the coronor’s report which ruled that air pollution made a ‘material contribution’ to the death of her daughter. 

Photo Credit – Supplied