Table 3 Overview of included studies
From: Engaging communities in addressing air quality: a scoping review
Study title | Study location | Study population | Study aim | Type/source of air pollution | Main approach used | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Citizen science | ||||||
A Day in the Life | Los Angeles, California, USA | Young people aged 15–17 years (n = 18) | Increase environmental health literacy, collect community owned data and promote awareness about air pollution exposure to young people | Indoor and outdoor; multiple | Air quality monitoring | [49] |
Air Pollution Assessment in Sheffield | Sheffield, England, UK | Groups of community, environmental, health and business representatives from the local area (n = 6) | Explore how focus groups can enable citizens to be involved in local AQ assessment | Outdoor; multiple | Air quality mapping | [50] |
AirBeat project | Roxbury, Massachusetts, USA | Children from 3 schools (n = 75); community groups and local residents | Describe and analyse the project from the perspective of community-based participants | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Air quality monitoring | [35] |
Citizen Sense Kit: Just good enough data | Pennsylvania, USA | Local residents (n = 30) | Demonstrate that citizen-gathered data can have other uses beyond regulatory comparison and compliance | Outdoor; hydraulic fracking | Air quality monitoring | [51] |
Community-empowered AQ Monitoring System | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA | Community members (n = 83) | Explore the use of scientific knowledge in citizen empowerment via information technology | Outdoor; industrial activity | Air quality monitoring | [52] |
Creating environmental consciousness in underserved communities | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA | Local residents—community action team training (n = 24); workshop (n = 72) | Increase knowledge and understanding of AQ issues within the community and facilitate solutions to the problem | Indoor and outdoor; multiple | Air quality monitoring | [53] |
CurieuzeNeuzen Project | Antwerp, Belgium | Local citizens (n = 1;840); schools (n = 51); hospitals (n = 10; companies (n = 45); other organisations (n = 15) | Examine if participation make citizens more aware of AQ risks and influences their behaviour, and whether the data is acknowledged and used by policy-makers | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Air quality monitoring | [54] |
Drift Catcher Participatory Air Monitoring Program | Multiple areas across the USA affected by pesticide drift | Pesticide Action Network representatives (n = 5); Drift Catcher project leaders (n = 2); community members (n = 10) | Understand lay involvement in technically complex participatory science projects | Outdoor; pesticide drift | Air quality monitoring | [44] |
Improving the Smart Control of Air Pollution in Europe (iSCAPE) | Guildford, England, UK | Local citizens – quiz (n = 140); workshop (n = 25) | Demonstrate that citizen science can be used to enhance public understanding of AQ by engaging communities and stakeholders | Indoor and outdoor; multiple | Air quality monitoring | [55] |
Participatory modelling and local governance of UK AQ | Bristol & York, England, UK | Local citizens | Capture and analyse lay understandings of spatially related environmental issues | Outdoor; multiple | Air quality modelling | |
Participatory photo-mapping and regional transportation policy | Dane County, Wisconsin, USA | Children aged approx. 11 years (n = 9); Adult residents (n = 12) | Understand the role of community-based advocacy in advancing public health concerns in transportation planning | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Air quality mapping | [45] |
Participatory testing and reporting: A pilot project | Worcester, Massachusetts, USA | Residential homes (n = 14) | Pilot a participatory testing and reporting programme, aimed at enabling future community-based AQ monitoring | Indoor & outdoor; multiple | Air quality monitoring | [32] |
Smart Citizens Lab | Amsterdam, Netherlands | Local citizens | Analyse experiences from using citizen sensing to improve urban AQ monitoring | Outdoor; multiple | Air quality monitoring | [34] |
The Imperial County Community Air Monitoring Network | Imperial County, California, USA | Network of community members (n = 19); high-school students as interns (n = 29) | Educate communities about local AQ, and generate data to find pollution hotspots and trends | Outdoor; multiple | Air quality monitoring, education and training | |
The Northern California Household Exposure study | Richmond & Bolinas, California, USA | Residential homes (n = 50) | Compare an industrial and non-industrial community in an air pollution exposure study | Indoor; emissions from oil refineries | Air quality monitoring | [31] |
West Harlem Environmental Action (WE ACT) | Harlem, New York, USA | Young people aged 14–17 years (n = 17) | Describe how place-based research and action can contribute to broader policy and change | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Air quality monitoring | [36] |
Youth Empowerment and Woodsmoke Photovoice study | Washington, USA | Young people aged 13–17 years (n = 10) | Understand youth engagement and empowerment in air sampling and photovoice | Indoor; woodsmoke from stoves | Air quality monitoring | |
Environmental/health assessment | ||||||
Community Action Against Asthma | Detroit, Michigan, USA | Children aged 7–11 years diagnosed with moderate to severe asthma (n = 3;000) | Assess the effects of AQ on asthma in children, and test interventions to reduce exposure to environmental triggers | Indoor and outdoor; multiple | Health assessment, air quality monitoring | |
Environmental Railyard Research Impacting Community Health (ENRRICH) | San Bernardino, California, USA | School community at two comparative schools | Share lessons learned from a partnership assessing respiratory health for children living and attending school near a railyard | Outdoor; railyard | Health assessment, educational theatrical production | [39] |
Metal Air Pollution Partnership | Houston, Texas, USA | Local residents – interviews (n = 9); focus groups (n = 6); surveys (n = 375) | Engage communities affected by metal air pollution and build collaboration between relevant stakeholders to develop solutions | Outdoor; metal from recycling plant | Environmental assessment, air quality monitoring | [40] |
Wabamun Community Exposure and Health Effects Assessment Programme | Edmonton, Alberta, Canada | Local residents (permanent and seasonal); local community interest groups; aboriginal people | Examine stakeholder relations and risk communication issues, when investigating health effects related to exposure | Outdoor; industrial activity | Health assessment, community surveys | [64] |
Wichita Initiative to Renew the Environment (WIRE) | Wichita, Kansas, USA | Community members—WIRE (n = 25); discussion groups (n = 1;500) | Establish a community-based initiative to identify community environmental concerns | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Environmental assessment, educational campaign | [30] |
Education and training | ||||||
Cincinnati Anti-Idling Campaign (CAIC) | Cincinnati, Ohio, USA | School community at local public schools | Develop an anti-idling campaign to decrease children’s exposure to air pollution and reduce asthma morbidity | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Educational campaign, air quality monitoring | [33] |
Visualising Air Pollution in a Chinese Immigrant Community | Boston Chinatown, Massachusetts, USA | Young people aged 16–17 years (n = 9); working age adults (n = 21) | Develop and test an intervention to communicate with and empower a community to take action on air pollution | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Interactive pollution map, workshop | [65] |
Policy review and development | ||||||
A Case Study of the City of Houston’s Bureau of AQ Control | Houston, Texas, USA | Local residents | Describe Houston’s journey through four levels of public involvement | Indoor and outdoor; multiple | AQ concern reporting system, neighbourhood canvassing | [47] |
ClairCity Project | Multiple European countries | Local citizens | Understand the causes of poor AQ and enable citizens to review policies to shape future cities | Outdoor; multiple | Online game, workshop | [66] |
Clean Air Task Force | Denver, Colorado, USA | Local citizens | Describe the role of a citizen task force in providing citizens with the opportunity to influence a state AQ implementation plan | Outdoor; multiple | Community task force, workshops | [46] |
System dynamics and environmental decisions | Las Vegas, Nevada, USA | Advisory group including community residents (n = 30) | Develop policy recommendations to address worsening traffic congestion and regional AQ | Outdoor; traffic-related emissions | Air quality modelling, advisory group | [67] |