With the new year starting the topic of conversation among
returning expats and Mongolians alike isn’t American politics, but the terrible
air pollution in Ulaanbaatar.So I
thought I would take on this topic (you know me if there’s a cause I’m right
there).Below are snapshots of two recent
articles from the UB Post that go into quite a bit of detail about this major
concern.One article shows two photos
comparing air quality in December 2010 and December 2015--not a very pretty picture.There’s a graph comparing UB with Beijing.Beijing refers to their air pollution as the
“airpocalypse” and according to this article we have surpassed Beijing about
50% of the time in “airpocalypse.”A
teacher from a well-known Mongolian university has said that Mongolians are
considered a fast-adapting people, but that we should NOT be adapting to the
toxins in the air instead what’s happening is that our cells are changing for
the worse.If possible, take the time to
read both articles which are filled with lots of interesting information.
More people are wearing masks and/or taking taxis even if
their destination is not that far away.I
walk to school early in the morning when the air quality is worse and I always
wear a mask.
Since returning to school my class has been doing a study
and paper on Stop Pollution!This is on
our bulletin board right outside our classroom for parents and all to see.I figure I’m teaching the future leaders of
Mongolia and even at the age of seven they can make a difference.