Publications·November 30, 2023
Live & Breathe Asia is a narrative impact booklet that showcases Clean Air Asia’s (CAA) people-centered work across the region—blending an executive message, a timeline of organizational milestones, and first-person stories from communities and partner cities. It underlines CAA’s science-based approach, its consensus-building role (notably through BAQ conferences), and a widening focus that integrates air, climate, and health with equity for disadvantaged communities.
Executive framing and values.
The Executive Director’s message frames CAA’s evolution from modest beginnings to a regional NGO addressing all sources of air pollution via science, partnerships, and collaboration. Priorities ahead include: deepening the air–climate–health nexus, advancing transformative green energy pathways (renewables, sustainable transport), and tackling inequities—ensuring that low-income communities gain access to clean, healthy air. The note reiterates CAA’s role as a consensus-builder—using the BAQ platform to align stakeholders, strengthen governance, and mobilize communities for change.
Milestones & vision—how the work has scaled.
The timeline tracks CAA’s program build-out and regional reach:
2013–2015. Strategy refocus; launch of the IBAQ Programme; designation as ASEAN regional training hub; first China strategy and the China AQM Knowledge Hub (1,000+ resources); inaugural China Air 2015 report; India liaison office evolves into a branch office.
2016–2017. 15th anniversary; Guidance Framework with UNEP; consolidation of transport programs (Clean Fuels & Vehicles, Low-Emissions Urban Development, Green Freight & Logistics) under a Sustainable Transport umbrella; appointment as Asia coordinator for BreatheLife; youth engagement expands.
2018–2019. New Pathways for Clean Air & Clean Energy initiative (China, India, Viet Nam, Philippines, Indonesia); formal registration under China’s NGO law; BlueGull partnership (ports/NGOs); China Blue Sky Forum; Asia Blue Skies launched with 3M (Manila CAAP; Delhi hotspot plans); annual green truck ranking and +Blue campaign in China; CAAP expansion across South and Southeast Asia; US equivalency accreditation.
2020–2021. 2030 strategy (clean air, blue skies, stabilized climate); first China port ranking; MSME emissions work in India; Power for Blue Skies (coal power, iron & steel in China); virtual capacity building; city CAAPs under ADB’s Asia Clean Blue Skies; Quezon City AQMP roadmap with C40; Indonesia strategy; large-scale online IBAQ Learning Series; five new India training modules; public +BluEr campaign (34M views on Weibo).
2022–2023. Philippines EV industry roadmap (CREVI) with DOE; China’s 10-Year Path Toward Clean Air benchmark report; technology roundtables/fairs (114 cities); Clean Construction Toolkit; rebrand and online services; staffing grows (55 staff across multiple countries); Indonesia office set-up; Pakistan provincial CAAP support; Cambodia clean fuels & vehicles guidelines in development; media initiatives (+Blue Poetry) and journalist capacity building; BAQ 2023 returns to Manila.
Human-impact stories—how communities experience the change.
Breathing new life into education (Delhi, India).
CAA installed air-quality sensors in schools (e.g., Ambience Public School), giving students and teachers real-time data to guide behavior. Insights (e.g., AM traffic spikes) led to schedule adjustments—moving outdoor activities after 10:00 a.m.—with reported drops in respiratory illnesses and absenteeism, plus stronger environmental literacy and civic advocacy among students.
Transforming skies (Beijing, China).
Photographer Zou Yi’s “BeijingAirNow” project visually chronicles Beijing’s air-quality turnaround from 2013 onward—used by CAA to spark public dialogue. The story connects blue-sky days with tangible health gains (e.g., reduced PM₂.₅-attributable mortality, higher life expectancy) highlighted at a CAA Earth Day 2023 event with scientists and experts.
A breath of fresh air (Tondo, Manila, Philippines).
In Barangay 128 (near the former “Smokey Mountain” landfill), CAA’s Asia Blue Skies partnership (with 3M and the City of Manila) piloted community-based actions under the city’s Clean Air Action Plan—from solid-waste management to awareness and monitoring. The barangay council adopted a 2023 Ecological Solid Waste Management Action Plan; city-wide measures include air-monitoring, fleet management, EV promotion, and indoor-air upgrades in hospitals—framed as environmental equity for low-income communities.
A breath of change (Narela, Delhi NCR, India).
Industrial neighborhoods saw fuel switching (away from coal/diesel), modernized machinery, and better ventilation/dust control—with residents reporting clearer air and improved health. The vignette credits Delhi authorities and partners (including CAA) for helping industries retrofit processes and reduce local exposure.
Quezon City: a journey toward cleaner air (Philippines).
With CAA support, Quezon City built the country’s most comprehensive AQ network: 40 non-reference sensors, 1 reference station, and 7 automated weather stations, tied to public advisories that help vulnerable residents (e.g., people with asthma) avoid hotspots. CAA turned over the city’s AQ Management Plan in Sept 2023, co-developed with a multi-agency technical working group and aligned to national/WHO directions.
Looking ahead.
CAA commits to expanding to more countries and cities, deepening work on clean air, inequity and disadvantaged communities, and pushing green-energy pathways through policy, stakeholder dialogues, and research—while continuing to use BAQ as the region’s trusted platform for implementation alignment.
Bottom line.
The booklet is less a technical report than a people-and-systems narrative: it shows how science-based tools (monitoring networks, sensors, plans), institutional pathways (training hubs, guidance frameworks), and community action knit together to deliver tangible health and equity benefits—while mapping a clear future agenda around standards compliance, clean energy, cleaner industry & transport, and data-driven governance.
Keywords
Clean Air Asia; Better Air Quality (BAQ) conferences; Integrated Programme for Better Air Quality (IBAQ); Guidance Framework; BreatheLife; Asia Blue Skies Program; BlueGull/Blue Sky Forum; Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP); Air-quality monitoring network; Low-cost sensors in schools; Equity and disadvantaged communities; Quezon City AQMP (40 sensors, 1 reference, 7 AWS); Community solid-waste action plan (Barangay 128); Industrial fuel-switch/ventilation (Narela); BeijingAirNow (Zou Yi); Capacity building (ASEAN training hub); Clean Construction Toolkit; CREVI (EV roadmap, Philippines); Pakistan provincial work; Cambodia clean fuels & vehicles guidelines; Media & journalist capacity.