Declines in Air Quality

Wildfires are both asymptom and an amplifierof climate change. This dynamic became a vivid reality in 2023 asCanada's unprecedented wildfiresburned thick layers of peat, releasing massive amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and causingmore air quality alertsin major U.S. cities over two months than in the past 23 years. While this particular crisis has drawn international attention, poor air quality has been a major public health issue for decades, especially in underserved communities. In 2023, NOAA, NASA, and a group of leading universitieslaunched a projectto better track the sources of major air pollutants. Private foundations are stepping up global efforts such as the Bloomberg Philanthropies-ledBreathe Citiesinitiative, which seeks to provide critical support, monitoring, and capacity-building tools for communities grappling with air quality challenges.