This week, the World Health Organization published its annual report on air pollution, following new data that it has on how many people are subject to air pollution issues globally. Much of the reporting here in the UK was on the most polluted towns and cities. For instance, the BBC led with the news that Port Talbot is the most polluted town in the UK for fine particle air pollution, at 18 micrograms per cubic metre. This is followed by Scunthorpe (15), Salford (15), and Gibraltar (14).

In all, 31 areas of the UK exceed the 10 micrograms per cubic metre standard set by the WHO, with a further 15 at that limit. And this is just fine particulate matter. Most interestingly of all is not what is just happening in the UK. This is a global problem. Muzaffarpur in India suffers the worst, with an astonishing figure of 197 micrograms per cubic metre. 7 million people die every year as a result of pollution levels like this.

Quite rightly, the WHO is referring to air pollution as the single biggest environmental health risk facing humanity. At EMSOL, we see this in exactly the same way. Whilst transport and freight traffic is not the only culprit, it is a big part of the problem, and is becoming a bigger part of the solution.

The logistics industry also has the same message. We have spoken before about adopting air pollution into industry best practice guidance. Vehicles that are reducing pollutants and more efficient driving practices are no longer just nice to have but make business sense. EMSOL is building the tools needed for companies to understand their performance at the fleet level, with detailed intelligence, to support management decision making that reinforces this best practice.

As we have stated before, we are a growing company seeking the right people with the right skills to build a solution that is of use to our end customers. That is a given. But this is not just about us. We are seeking people who want to contribute to tackling a challenge much bigger than EMSOL. This is about building a service offering that creates value for our customers, but as critically, it tackles one of the biggest threats that humanity faces.

We do not just want people who are the best coders, talent gurus, marketing professionals, and leading lights in the logistics sector. We want people with a passion for taking on challenges much bigger than themselves. And who want to build things that make a real difference to cities across the world and people’s lives.

9 out of 10 people across the world currently breath in the polluted air. This should be 0 out of 10. And EMSOL is committed to playing its part in making this so. If you want to help us with this, please get in touch.