It’s a Wrap – All Good Things Come to an End

“Air is life, pollution is death. What if we live life like dead? That is what air pollution is.” Rajat Mittal. Wow, can you believe it? It has been 13 weeks of us exploring deeper into the issue of air pollution! I do hope that you have learnt a thing or two from my blog …

Floating on Air – Are We Breathing in Microplastics?

“We are being choked to death by the amount of plastic that we throw away. It’s killing our oceans. It’s entering into our bodies in the fish we eat.”Kevin Bacon. While many of us might be briefly aware of the presence of microplastics present in the oceans from some of the graphic images with organisms …

Turn Over A New Leaf – Make America Normal Again?

“Governments must now put words into actions, in particular by implementing policies that make effective progress on the mitigation pledges they have made. That is why my key message is to price carbon right and to do it now.” IMF Chief Christine Lagarde. The past few days have been interesting yet distracting. Instead of focusing …

This is How the Cookie Crumbles – Does Food Wastage Contribute to Air Pollution?

“Feel what it is like to truly starve, and I guarantee that you will forever think twice before wasting food.” Criss Jami. In Singapore, it is more common to hear "what to eat for lunch ah?" as compared to "do we have enough food for lunch". Have you ever wondered why? In many parts of …

Kicking the Bucket – Increased chances of dying from COVID-19 because of air pollution?

“Environmental pollution is an incurable disease. It can only be prevented.” Barry Commoner. On a similar topic as my previous post on the relation of COVID-19 and air pollution, a study conducted by Pozzer et al. this year has estimated that exposure to air pollution could increase someone’s chances of dying from COVID-19 by 15% …

Under the Weather – Is COVID-19 Reducing the Impacts of Air Pollution?

“The sea is the universal sewer where all kinds of pollution end up conveyed by rain from the atmosphere and the mainland.” Jacque Cousteau. By now, I think most of us would be quite accustomed to the new normal brought about by COVID-19 – from the new work or study from home arrangement to the …

On the Bubble – Is Bubble Tea Really Sustainable?

“You are my favourite cup of tea.” – Every Cheesy Pickup Line Ever. During the recent Circuit Breaker period, the Singapore government restricted the opening of businesses to prevent further escalation of the number of COVID-19 community cases – and this included the temporary closure of bubble tea shops. It doesn’t matter if you are …

Built for the Road Ahead – Are Electric Cars a Greener Option to Reduce Air Pollution?

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards. So, you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in the future.” Steve Jobs. With time, people have realised that driving produces a lot of greenhouse gases that have led to global warming and air pollution in many countries. …

Blazing the Trail – Examining International Cooperation during Mt Pinatubo’s Eruption

“The only thing that will redeem mankind is cooperation.” Bertrand Russell. In my previous posts on this series, I discussed the causes and how outdoor air quality and the health problem that arose from Mt Pinatubo’s eruption. For today, I will base my discussions and analysis based on this documentary on Mt Pinatubo’s eruption: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x90v_cpAZI8 …

A Hot Mess – Examining Health Problems Arising from Mt Pinatubo’s Eruption

“A volcano may be considered as a cannon of immense size.” Oliver Goldsmith. Now that we have looked at some of the causes and events leading up to Mt Pinatubo’s eruption and how the outdoor air quality in the Philippines and all around the world has been affected by the eruption in our previous post, …