Clean Air Monitoring Interventions for Empowering Communities in Severely Under-Monitored Sections of Queens County, New York

Air pollution contributes to 100,000 premature deaths annually in the U.S., yet the infrastructure to monitor it is often absent in the communities most at risk.

In Queens County, New York, where highways, airports, and industrial centers converge, many communities lack the hyperlocal data necessary to advocate for their own health and policy changes.

A Community-Centered Monitoring Network

To address these severe monitoring gaps, the Clean Air Monitoring Interventions for Empowering Communities in Severely Under-Monitored Sections of Queens County, New York project, supported by Columbia World Projects, is deploying a community-owned sensor network. By integrating satellite data with ground-based reference monitors from 2000 to the present, the initiative will provide a comprehensive daily update on air quality for the most impacted geographic areas of Queens.

The project encourages community participation in:

• Sensor Deployment: The project is installing at least 25 new monitoring sites in previously unmonitored areas, with students and community groups building and maintaining the sensors themselves.
• Actionable Data: Findings are translated into a bilingual (English/Spanish) website and smartphone app, offering real-time data, health recommendations, and interactive mapping — tools that residents can use to demand evidence-based policy changes.

Strategic Partnerships for Social Impact

The project leverages a broad network of local stakeholders to ensure the collected data leads to advocacy:

• Educational Outreach: Working with Solar One Green Design Lab and local libraries to host hands-on demonstrations and science-based curriculum.
• Community Mobilization: Collaborating with organizations like Queens Together, faith-based groups, and science museums to increase public awareness.
• Policy Advocacy: By involving students and families in sensor construction, the project builds local capacity to use technical data for long-term environmental and policy reform.

Project Team

Daniel Westervelt
Associate Research Professor, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Climate School
Daniel M. Westervelt is an associate research professor at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO). Dr. Westervelt is also an affiliate faculty member of the Columbia University Data Science Institute, an affiliated scientist with NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and an air pollution advisor to the US State Department.

V. Faye McNeill
Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Chemical Engineering, SEAS
V. Faye McNeill is a professor and vice chair in the Department of Chemical Engineering and a professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University. She is also Principal Investigator of the Columbia University Clean Air Toolbox for Cities Initiative, where she leads that organizations’ efforts on air quality in India.

Jonathan Forgash
Co-Founder and CEO of Queens Together
Jonathan Forgash is the executive director of Queens Together, a restaurant association and community service organization. Their mission is to connect the diverse independent restaurants of Queens with resources, advocacy, promotional services, and community service.

Karen Alsen
Managing Director of Education, Solar One
Karen Alsen is an environmental educator with diverse experience teaching science, sustainability, and arts programming to young people. She has taught and designed curricula for Brooklyn Children’s Museum, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, City Science, Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy, Bronx River Alliance, Sustainable Learning, and LeapNYC.

Gabrielle Rodriguez
Director, STEM Education, Solar One
Gabrielle Rodriguez is a science communicator and educator with a focus on climate, ecology, and sustainability. She believes that learning about the natural world and contributing to environmental resiliency can be done at any age and with any educational background.

Tania Goicoechea
Environmental Education Program Manager, Solar One
Tania Goicoechea is an environmental educator committed to making climate education more inclusive and accessible, with a special focus on breaking down language barriers for Latinx communities on the frontlines of climate change. Originally from Costa Rica, she believes that education is a powerful tool for building a more just and resilient future.