Daniel is a former electrical engineer with a deep-seated love for the environment. His pursuit of an economic air quality monitor to highlight the significance of wetlands led to his interest in air quality and the formal incorporation of Aire Ciudadano in 2017.
Their recent collaboration with District Environment Secretariat (Secretaría de Ambiente) aims to assess how air quality levels impact student learning and whether installing air filters in classrooms improves student learning. A total of 450 low-cost sensors (manufactured by Aire Ciudadano) are being deployed, with 320 of them already in place within schools throughout Bogota city.
The result of the ongoing school project has initiated a conversation about air pollution, one that will hopefully pave the way for the formulation of policies and guidelines. In pursuit of this vision, Daniel is actively seeking support to improve product design, develop code, build a website and dashboard, and implement an effective communications plan. He aspires to measure air quality in the Amazon region, where a surge in deforestation, wildfires, and crop burning is severely degrading air quality.
Country Profile (Colombia): Opportunity Score 4.8: Annual average PM2.5 levels are more than times the WHO guideline. There is public PM2.5 data produced by the government, as well as there is a national ambient air quality standard for PM2.5.