Through OpenAQ’s data platform, Clean Air One Atmosphere is able to provide data access to community members in Ghana and Malawi, helping them learn what they are breathing first-hand and become more environmentally aware.

The Problem

Air pollution in Africa is a major yet often overlooked public health crisis, causing over one million premature deaths each year. Despite the scale of this threat, 67% of Sub-Saharan African countries lack air quality monitoring systems. This leaves many communities unaware of the dangers they face and deprives policymakers of the evidence needed to act. Thankfully, community-based organizations are stepping in to fill this gap, but they face data management challenges, such as secure, long-term data storage and the ability to efficiently share data generated by different types and brands of sensors.

The Solution

Clean Air One Atmosphere (CAOA) is an example of a grassroots organization whose approach is rooted in data, education, and advocacy. The organization conducts community-based field studies to gather local air quality data and uses these findings to spark action. In Accra, CAOA’s monitoring at a high school revealed harmful PM2.5 levels in classrooms, data that led directly to the installation of improved cookstoves. In Madina, they presented findings to parliamentarians to push for stronger air quality policies. They’ve also launched the Malawi Initiative for Clean Air Solutions, which is laying the groundwork for a future Clean Air Act in the country. By engaging schools, elected officials, and the public, CAOA is building a movement for clean air from the ground up. 

As described below, CAOA has been able to preserve and share data due, in part, to OpenAQ’s support. Victor Dzidefo Ablo, CAOA’s lead, notes, “We value OpenAQ’s consistent, easy-to-use interface and the ability to freely access our and other third-party sensor data. This leads to higher-quality studies and improved efficiency.”

How OpenAQ Helps

OpenAQ’s open-source platform plays a crucial role in CAOA’s success. By providing a secure and transparent place to store and access data, OpenAQ ensures that CAOA’s findings remain usable and trusted. When monitoring devices were stolen, CAOA didn’t lose their data; OpenAQ had already archived it. When students wanted to explore air quality trends, OpenAQ made the data accessible and easy to understand. By removing technical and financial barriers to data access, OpenAQ helps CAOA focus on what matters: using science to protect people’s health and advocate for cleaner, safer environments.

For more information 

Read the longer-version blog here: How Clean Air One Atmosphere (CAOA) Is Using Field Studies to Fight For Clean Air in West Africa

Application of air sensors to support clean cooking initiatives at education centres in low- and middle-income countries using Accra High School, Ghana as a case study. Victor Dzidefo Ablo, Collins Gameli Hodoli, Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, Kojo Tsikata, Lord Offei-Darko, Angela Schmitt, Reginald Quansah, Carl Malings, Daniel M Westervelt, and Mohammed Iqbal Mead. https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU24/EGU24-202.html 

Hodoli, Collins Gameli, Abubakari, Aidatu, & Adzaho, Gameli. (2018). The need for open data on air quality monitoring in logistically difficult environments. Clean Air Journal, 28(2), 25-26. https://doi.org/10.17159/2410-972x/2018/v28n2a13