Transboundary cooperation for our shared air: protecting public health

The World Health Organization (WHO) publication “Transboundary Cooperation for Our Shared Air – Protecting Public Health” (2025) presents a comprehensive overview of global and regional mechanisms that promote collaborative air quality management and health protection. As part of the Air Quality, Energy and Health – Science and Policy Summaries (SPS) series, the brief underlines that air pollution is both a climate and health crisis, causing an estimated 6.4 million deaths annually, with about 90% occurring in low- and middle-income countries. The report emphasizes that air pollutants such as particulate matter and ozone travel across borders, making international and regional cooperation indispensable. It references UNEA Resolution 6/10 (2024), which calls for strengthening regional cooperation to improve air quality globally, and identifies numerous established frameworks that can be leveraged to reduce air pollution through science-based collaboration. The document maps a wide range of transboundary agreements and networks. In Asia, it highlights the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP), promoting joint efforts among Southeast Asian countries to control land and forest fires; the Malé Declaration, uniting South Asian countries including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka on air pollution monitoring and policy development; the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET), advancing regional data sharing and capacity building; and the UNESCAP Regional Action Programme on Air Pollution, supporting Asia-Pacific cooperation. The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) is presented as a model of multistakeholder coordination in the Hindu Kush Himalaya, spanning Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. These initiatives are complemented by global partnerships such as UNEP’s Global Air Quality Cooperation Network, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), the World Meteorological Organization’s Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW), and WHO’s leadership in integrating health metrics into air pollution and climate policy. The brief stresses the importance of including health expertise in transboundary frameworks, showcasing the UNECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) and its Joint Task Force on the Health Aspects of Air Pollution as successful models for linking science and policy. It outlines the value of risk quantification tools like AirQ+ and CLIMAQ-H, which have been instrumental in supporting evidence-based policymaking. The document calls for expanded capacity building, harmonization of standards, and stronger integration of the health argument into air quality governance. It concludes that regional agreements—whether legally binding or scientific in nature—must be sustained politically and financially to ensure long-term cooperation. WHO advocates preserving these mechanisms as platforms for knowledge-sharing and coordination to achieve cleaner air and healthier populations across all regions. By embedding public health considerations in air quality governance, this technical brief positions transboundary collaboration as a cornerstone of sustainable development, environmental protection, and regional solidarity across Asia and beyond.