Air Pollution – a Global Threat to our Health

About this course

We all have to breathe to live. But the air we breathe is polluted both outdoors and indoors. Each year, this pollution costs 7 million lives across the globe – and a lot of suffering. 1 in 8 deaths is due to air pollution. This course will provide you with an introduction to the most recent research in the field of health effects of air pollution as well as a broader understanding of sources and spread of air pollution and what we should do about it. What is air pollution? What are the sources? How and where are we exposed outdoors and indoors? What happens in the body? Which diseases are the result? Who are the most vulnerable? How can we assess the effects of air pollution? And what should we do to reach the Sustainable Development Goal to “substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution”? These are some of the important questions we will address in the course. During the course you will meet researchers and experts from the University of Copenhagen and the Technical University of Denmark. They work with different aspects of air pollution and health: toxicology, exposure assessment, epidemiology, engineering and health impact assessment. It is a global responsibility to combat the health impacts of air pollution, and this fight can only be won through new knowledge and global collaboration. We hope you will join us in the course and equip yourself to take part in this global and individual health challenge.