Quezon City Government
The Pitch
Quezon City built a citywide, low-cost air quality monitoring network from scratch, identifying previously invisible pollution and providing residents and leaders with the real-time data needed to shape transport, education and health policy for millions of residents.
The Problem
Quezon City lacked local air quality monitoring, forcing residents and policymakers to rely on national data that did not identify which neighborhoods faced the greatest exposure risk. Vulnerable groups such as children, older adults and residents of informal settlements had no way to know when or where air pollution posed an immediate health threat, and the city had no evidence base to target interventions.
The Process
- Built the Philippines' first citywide air quality monitoring network, demonstrating that comprehensive monitoring could be achieved with local government investment
- Positioned 40 sensors across traffic corridors, schools, markets and green spaces, ensuring the data reflected the places where exposure and vulnerability were highest rather than being evenly and abstractly distributed
- Shared real-time air quality data through social media, public dashboards and health advisories, so that residents could make informed decisions during pollution episodes
- Developed sector-specific response protocols, including school suspension guidelines for high-pollution days, low-emission transport routing and targeted health-risk management for vulnerable groups
- Ran offline perception surveys and targeted information, education and communication (IEC) campaigns for communities lacking internet access
- Engaged vendors and jeepney and tricycle drivers via workshops and the Inclusive Climate Action Program
The Impact
- Built the Philippines' most extensive air quality monitoring network, growing from zero sensors in 2019 to 40 non-reference sensors and 1 reference-grade monitor, giving the city localized air quality data for the first time
- Enabled the city to identify respiratory illness hotspots correlated with high-pollution zones, directly informing health-risk management for children, seniors and residents with pre-existing conditions
- Informed construction and/or updates to 201 kilometers of bike lanes, a fleet of e-buses and hybrid vehicles and two pedestrian corridors
- Advanced school-level policies and a Bike-to-School pilot that routed students along lower-exposure paths
- Turned Quezon City’s approach into a model for wider adoption: the Department of Environment and Natural Resources procured the same sensor technology, and the National Capital Region Airshed Governing Board recognized it as a best practice
