Almost everyone on Earth breathes polluted air, which cuts the average global life expectancy by more than two years. According to the latest data from the World Health Organisation (WHO), 99% of people live in areas where air pollution exceeds the permissible (safe) levels. On average, pollution shortens the average life expectancy for every person in the world by 2.2 years – amounting to a total of 17 billion years of life.

The impact of various types of air pollution on life expectancy is comparable to the effects of smoking; it is more than three times greater than the impact of alcohol consumption and unsafe water, six times greater than the impact of HIV/AIDS, and 89 times greater than the impact of conflict and terrorism. (...)