As climate change increasingly becomes a problem, the world’s greatest minds are seeking creative solutions to clean our earth’s air. Some environmental scientists, architects, and designers are analyzing buildings to determine how to effectively use them for passively cleaning smoggy urban air.

Climate change has brought a magnifying glass to the global problem of air pollution. As we build, create, and manufacture, our machines release toxic chemicals into the air that cause smog and other forms of pollution.

Air Pollution

Fossil fuels emit harmful chemicals that can cause serious problems for the environment and people’s health. Greenhouse gas emissions come from the use of fuels such as natural gas, coal, wood, and petroleum.

Gracefully statuesque with muscular shoulders and a long, arching neck, giraffes roam the African savanna, grazing from the treetops. Their legs are often longer than 6 feet, and they can reach speeds of 35 miles per hour for short distances. These tall creatures with goofy faces, long purple tongues, and an array of individual spotting patterns flaunt two horns alongside their ears that mimics a crown. Needing about 5-30 minutes of sleep per 24-hour period and requiring a sip of water every few days, giraffes are basically superbeings.

Hidden behind the dense curtain of the ocean water and singing an eerie song of their own, whales are the gentle giants of the deepest depths. Whales are built similarly to the Hippopotamus and are warm-blooded with a layer of blubber to help insulate and moderate body temperature. Large flippers allow them to navigate the ocean currents, and their blowholes on the top of their head allow a quick breath before diving again. Some whales can hold their breath for up to 90 minutes.

Earth Day, an annual celebration of the efforts made to support the environment, occurs on April 22nd throughout the world. This day is meant to help raise awareness of environmental issues through rallies, service projects, conferences, and other outdoor activities. Although Earth Day began as a small grassroots movement, its existence has propelled the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the passage of the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Water Quality Improvement Act, the Federal Occupational Health and Safety Act, and others.