Barcelona, November 2017- June 2018.
xAire represents a large-scale monthly air quality monitoring in Barcelona. It is an unprecedented citizen science project that involves schools and families to both: collect new geographically accurate data on air quality, and to empower themselves to present them rigorously in front of the City Council.
Foto: Claudia PM Santibánez.
The end of 2017 marked the launching of a collective mapping of Barcelona’s air quality, namely nitrogen dioxide (NO2), one of the main pollutants of the city. In November, a pilot testing is carried out by a group of neighbors in the Poblenou district with the positioning of 40 diffusion tubes. Given the success of the pilot, the monitoring is scaled-up to the whole city. The monitoring takes the form of an intergenerational citizen science project which counts on the participation of primary school students who install the diffusion tubes with the help of their mothers, fathers and teachers. The sensors, installed throughout the city, are recollected after one month.
With the support of the Consorci d’Educació de Barcelona, 18 public primary schools from the 10 districts of the city participate in the action. Initial training sessions are organized for teachers and families about air quality measuring , and for the collective decision on the location of the sampling points, based on their knowledge of the schools’ surroundings.
Between February 16 and March 16, 2018, a total of 800 diffusion tubes are installed. The aim is to improve the quantity of data provided by the (seven) official measurement stations currently in Barcelona. The citizen science data provides very detailed local information on NO2 levels that allows to improve existing predictive models and to better understand the health impact of this pollutant. Yet, the project also empowers 1,650 participants, translating into an unprecedented scientific and collective effort in Barcelona.
Every school interprets the data, and presents a set of conclusions and recommendations during the 5th Barcelona Science Congress, a conference where young students act both as presenters and assistants. The conclusions and results are also delivered to the Deputy Mayor in Ecology, Urban Planning and Mobility and to the Commissioner of Ecology, during an event at the Barcelona City Council held on April 26, 2018.
xAire was born from the “Estació Ciutat” community project, led by artist and engineer Natalie Jeremijenko, curated by Josep Perelló and directed by Amanda Masha-Caminals. It is part of the framework of the exhibition “After the end of the world”, organized by the CCCB.
En col·laboració amb:
DKV
4sfera Innova
Mobile Week Barcelona
Institut de Salut Global de Barcelona (ISGlobal)
Mapping for Change
5th Science Congress of the Consorci d’Educació de Barcelona
Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB), through the “Estació Ciutat” project