News

Air pollution: Children demand the right to breathe clean air

Pupil wellbeing
With millions of UK pupils attending schools in high pollution areas, the right to breathe clean air looks set to be elevated by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Pete Henshaw takes a look


With air pollution set to become the leading cause of child mortality by 2050, the right to breathe clean air looks set to be elevated within the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

Access to clean air has recently been recognised as a human right but is not among children’s rights as defined by the UNCRC.

It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of children a year die globally due to the impact of air pollution.

In the UK, research for Clean Air Day in June revealed that more than 3.4 million children go to schools in areas where air pollution levels are above World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended limits.

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