The Clean Air South Network: Report Launch
The Clean Air South network aims to spark cross-sector discussion on how poor air quality in the region can be addressed. In its second meeting in Winchester on the 14th January, the network launched a new report outlining the barriers and suggested solutions for future impact.
This report was produced as a collaboration between the University of Southampton’s Centre for the South, the GeoData Institute, the Sustainability and Resilience Institute and Wessex Health Partners, funded by the University of Southampton Civic directorate.
The Clean Air South report launch event provided space for partnerships across sectors and authorities, such as key players in the visitor economy, local authorities, healthcare providers, academia, and charity work. Since pollution knows no borders, the Clean Air South network presents an opportunity for shared benefit in the central South by addressing poor air quality through a regional lens.
This approach is timely given the recent Hampshire and Solent Councils request for a fast-tracked delivery of the government’s devolution programme. Our Devolution insight paper suggests that building trust across jurisdictions is a key ingredient for successful devolution negotiations; networks such as Clean Air South may lead the way as catalysts for regional unification.
Having showcased the report, which consolidates existing knowledge of the region’s poor air quality and identifies potential solutions, the network discussed and highlighted their own knowledge gaps, ongoing projects and existing expertise. Education and behaviour change, as well as the capacity of local authorities, were some of the identified barriers to improvement.
Click the link to learn more about the launch of the Clean Air South network in July 2024.
“There is no safe level of air pollution.”