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Breathing Easier

11/2/2017

13 Comments

 
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by David Hagenbuch, founder of Mindful Marketing & author of Honorable Influence

When thinking of things you do most often each day, working, eating, and checking your cellphone may come to mind.  However, there’s another essential activity we tend to forget that everyone does with even greater frequency—breathing.  Unfortunately, that involuntary behavior is becoming more dangerous for a greater number of people.  It’s good, therefore, that a German company has developed an innovative device to make for better breathing.  
 
It’s tempting to think that what we don’t see can’t hurt us, but that belief couldn’t be more misleading when it comes to air quality.  In 2012, over 6.5 million people died from diseases related to air pollution worldwide.  That 11.6% of all global deaths, making air pollution “the fourth-largest threat to human health, behind high blood pressure, dietary risks and smoking.”  Or, to frame it differently, more people died from air pollution-related diseases in 2012 than died from tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and road injuries combined.
 
We might think those risks belong to others because the air we breathe seems fine, but “more than nine out of 10 of the world’s population – 92% – lives in places where air pollution exceeds safe limits, according to research from the World Health Organization (WHO).”  So, air pollution should be everyone’s concern.

One company that has made better breathing its mission is Green City Solutions.  The Berlin-based company has developed “The world’s first bio-tech filter to quantifiably improve air quality.”  When you think “air filter” you might picture what’s under your car’s hood or in your home’s HVAC system; however, Green City’s “CityTree” filters look more like a piece of lawn than layers of ribbed paper.
 
Each filter, which is about 3.5 square meters in size (9.84 ft. wide x 13.12 ft. high x 7.19 ft. deep), contains an inner layer of moss that “binds particulate matter, produces oxygen and cools the air.”  However, moss’s unique ability to permanently integrate pollution particles into its own biomass comes with a limitation:  The low-profile plant needs amble water and shade to survive, which are noticeably missing in many urban areas.
 
Fortunately, Green City has developed a solution.  An outer layer of shade-giving plants protects the moss from direct sun, while an automated water supply keeps the all of the plant-life hydrated.  In addition, built-in solar panels provide the energy needed for each CityTree to function, and integrated IoT technology transmits environmental and performance data in real time.  In sum, CityTree is a both a natural and intelligent air filter.
 
As a result, each CityTree can provide “the same environmental benefit 275 actual trees would. It’s able to absorb some 250 grams of particles per day, removing 240 metric tons of carbon dioxide every year.”  The key is the moss’s larger leaf structure, which allows the ‘lowly’ plant to absorb more pollutants than any other vegetation.

But, air filtering isn’t the only thing that a CityTree offers.  An installation can also include a built-in bench in a variety of woods, offering a pleasing place for people to lounge.

So, what do CityTrees cost?  They average about $25,000, installed.  That’s considerable cash for an air filter, but they seem to be well-worth the price when one considers the deadly outcomes of air pollution mentioned above and each CityTree's unique purification potential.

Also, the cost can be offset by an optional advertising display.  If a city persuades a company to underwrite an installation, that firm can have its name or other promotional message placed tastefully on the giant filter.

However, an important concern is the efficacy of Green City’s post hoc air-cleaning versus more preemptive pollution control.  As Gary Fuller, an air effluence expert at King's College London, suggests, there’s no way to route automobile emissions and other urban pollution to CityTrees the way the air in a house is channeled through the home’s AC filter.  The best solution, therefore, is to stop pollution before it’s made, rather than trying to capture it after the fact.

Fuller’s point is a good one.  By way of analogy, driver-assistance technology that can help avoid car accidents, like a lane departure warning, is more ideal than devices that lessen injury after accidents happen or as they occur.  Still, automobile manufacturers shouldn’t stop installing airbags and mounting seatbelts.  At least at this point, saving lives in car accidents should continue to be a multipronged, before-and-after approach.

The same is true for pollution control.  Until air pollution is no longer produced, it’s important to try to reduce what’s already been made.  However modest it may be, that reduction will also save lives.

As of this past June, Green City had installed about 20 CityTrees in many major metropolitan areas around the world, including Brussels, Hong Kong, Oslo, and Paris.  The company’s sales success is helping our world breathe a little easier, which deserves to be called “Mindful Marketing.”


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13 Comments
Amelia P
12/1/2017 08:14:43 pm

Although Green City's, CityTrees, is a very interesting concept and possibly the first step to greater changes, it seems more like a band-aid fix than an actual solution. The air pollution problem is clear, however instead of $25,000 being invested in each air filter, the money should be used to make a lasting difference such as technological improvements and/or legislative reforms. I am not entirely sure if I admire Green City for their invention or disapprove of their financial gain from such a serious environmental issue.

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Ben J
12/2/2017 11:24:02 am

This product/initiative reminds me of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC), which builds sustainable gardens on top of buildings in urban areas. They have many of the same benefits as City Tree - including the all-important role of improving air quality to a substantial degree. I think that both of these companies are doing amazing work, both by increasing awareness of the benefits of living sustainably, and by removing harmful emissions from the air.

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Clarisse A
12/3/2017 02:15:35 pm

In my opinion, Green City's City Trees product is one good solution to the damage that has been done in regards to high pollution level. Indeed it's better at some point to have prevented it instead of spending $25000 on each instalment, however it is good to provide a cure and not just prevention. Also, it helps other businesses to contribute more to the society by installing on or more CityTrees in the city and promote themselves as environmentally and socially aware of situations around them. Thus, I think this is Mindful marketing.

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Colby
12/3/2017 05:55:06 pm

I completely agree that this is mindful marketing. Working on sustainability efforts has never been more important than it is today. While I don't believe that this fix is monumental as far as sustainability is concerned, any progress is important and due to that I find what Green City Solutions is doing to be mindful marketing.

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Andrew P
12/5/2017 03:11:34 pm

This sounds like a great product and mindful marketing. The city tree sounds like something that most American cities could use to help clean up pollution large factories.

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Christian Pavlovich
12/6/2017 10:49:34 am

Green City Solutions is making great strides to help make in impact in air quality. As the article noted ultimately this does not solve the problem and does not directly address the issue of emissions in the first place. However because the problem is complex and global, I doubt we will see implementation of a massive solution oriented plan. This is why it is important for companies like Green City to put out their ideas to help combat the issue little by little.

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Amy Kimmel
12/6/2017 11:21:10 pm

I think Green City Solution's CityTree is a very innovate solution to the problem of air pollution in cities all around the world. With industry comes excess pollutant emissions from factories and cars, for example, which in turn degrade air quality. If you've ever ridden behind a diesel truck, you know how unpleasant it can be to breath in poor quality air. I'm interested in Sustainability, and as such, see this as a great bridge for the termination of air pollution. Although it cannot cut it off from the source, it can have a measurable positive impact on the quality of air of which people breath. Until stricter policies are implemented to improve air quality, CityTrees will go the distance in reducing the amount of pollutants in the air. It's also visually and aesthetically pleasing, and can serve as an additional function when coupled with a bench or an advertisement. I feel that this is a mindful product, as it has human health and best interests in mind.

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Cole Reed
12/7/2017 12:30:37 pm

This is an important innovation in today's society. With the frightening amount of pollution that is increasing every day, companies like Green City Solutions are helping to solve this problem. While their product is expensive, I see Green City Solutions only increasing in popularity, especially as our earth-conscious generation age and begin to enter the political and business world. It is no surprise to me that it is a German country and countries that are more earth-friendly, like Sweden and Finland, are probably already adopting Green City Solutions or products similar to the CityTree. I believe that this is definitely Mindful Marketing.

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Jake M
12/7/2017 02:01:26 pm

I've always enjoyed the idea of helping out the environment. CityTrees are a great idea which can help the problem of pollution. Not only are they aesthetically pleasing, but they help out immensely with the environment. It's a mindful product, because it upholds the societal values of environmental awareness and the best interests of people's health!

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https://www.essayuniverse.net/papersmart-review/ link
1/26/2018 07:17:35 am

It is good to see that concern authorities are taking serious action about having a clean atmosphere. It sure seems to be something new that we are not seeing everyday at every any place.

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Kayla Vergara
2/1/2018 03:28:21 am

Green City Solutions’ creative approach to improving air quality introduces a new way of protecting the environment. I agree that while we must take steps to help reverse the damage of air pollution, appropriate actions must also take place to reduce air pollution also. Either way, acknowledging the problem of air pollution and taking any measures to reverse or eliminate it benefits the earth. While these bio-tech filters are quite expensive, I think that it will influence other countries to take air quality more seriously and will lead to more innovations in cleaner technologies that will benefit instead of harm the environment in the future.

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Francis Rouse
2/2/2018 01:14:59 am

I really like this innovative idea that GreenCity Solutions has. I think that it will be very valuable to our society especially considering the data given about how air pollution has been killing so many people. I also like that because the product is so expensive they are willing to lower the price for cities who need it and are willing to sponsor them. I also think they are doing a good job of appealing the safety and environmental of society and they put their time and effort into making a product that creates value for society and the environment.

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Christopher Han
3/12/2018 10:11:07 pm

I think we must really focus on getting rid of air pollution as their is so much of it in the world today. We need to respect mother nature because we need it to survive our everyday lives. The high end filters should be a game changer when it comes to helping the world with our pollution.

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