Air-Aware: The People-Powered Search for Healthy Air REPORT OUT NOW!
- Faith in Place
- 12 minutes ago
- 1 min read
Faith in Place released AirAware: The People-Powered Search for Healthier Air, a first-of-its-kind citizen science documenting indoor air quality testing conducted in more than 100 Chicago and Cook County homes.
We spend 90 percent of our time indoors, and most of us don't think much about the air we breathe while we heat our homes and cook our food. Many of us don't realize the risks that indoor air pollution poses to our health and general well-being.
That is why Faith in Place, in partnership with faith communities and Houses of Worship, created the citizen science study.
Key Findings from the report, AirAware: The People-Powered Search for Healthier Air, include:
Carbon monoxide found in 8 in 10 homes; half of the homes exceeded outdoor standard.
It’s not the food. It’s the fuel. Stove use increased indoor pollution within minutes—quickly exceeding levels set for outdoor air quality standards.
In some homes, pollution was detected beyond the kitchen after stove use.
Kitchen ventilation was often limited or weak.
Testing changed how residents understood their homes.
Big thank you to our staff, volunteers, and residents whose homes were tested for your work!
This citizen science report was conducted in Peoples of Gas Territory in Chicago, IL, but the findings are relevant to any home with gas appliances! If you are interested in bringing this type of testing to your community or home, fill out our interest form to be the first to know when this opportunity opens up!
Check out our website with additional health and safety resources.
