Billions of people around the world will head to the polls this year. Voters in 80 countries, including the United States, Mexico, and India, will choose their next government in 2024, shaping the future of our uncertain world.
An overwhelming majority of these voters share an unhappy backdrop to their day-to-day lives: More than 9 in 10 of us are exposed to unsafe, unhealthy air.
It is a silent killer that strikes disproportionately among marginalized communities. People on the lowest incomes are most likely to live and work in areas that are badly polluted, and they pay the heaviest price. Children under 5 who live in a lower-income country are 60 times more likely to die from air pollution.