Press Room

The Atlantic to Host “The Air We Breathe” Summit Exploring Air Quality in America on Thursday, April 20 in Chicago

Chicago's Public Health Commissioner, Chief Technology Officer, Building Commissioner; American Lung Association President; WGN Chief Meteorologist; former NFL Linebacker Chris Draft to Join The Atlantic's Summit on Air Quality in America

Washington, D.C. (April 12, 2017)-- Smog and air pollution trigger millions of hospital visits and health problems for Americans each year; even the air we breathe indoors is often polluted with chemicals and poor ventilation. On April 20, The Atlantic will convene its first-ever summit on the state of air in America: examining the economic and societal costs of poor air quality and strategies for making the air we breathe cleaner.

“The Air We Breathe: An Atlantic Summit” will take place on Thursday, April 20, from 8:30-11:30 AM CST at VenueSIX10 (610 S. Michigan Avenue) in Chicago. The event is open to press; media should RSVP directly to this email or call 202-266-7338.

Speakers include American Lung Association President and CEO Harold Wimmer; Chicago Public Health Commissioner Julie Morita; Chicago’s Chief Technology Officer Danielle DuMerer; WGN-TV’s Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling; Chicago Building Commissioner Judy Frydland; and former NFL linebacker and asthma and lung cancer advocate Chris Draft. Among the topics covered: the Clean Air Act and balancing clean air initiatives without stymying business interests; how smart cities and building design can impact air quality and public health; the role of the states and local governments in enforcing clean air policies; and weather and climate change.

Additional speakers include:

  • Joseph Allen, Assistant Professor of Exposure Assessment Science, Director of Healthy Buildings Program at Harvard Public School of Health  

  • Charlie Catlett, Director, Array of Things Project, Urban Center for Computation and Data, Argonne National Laboratory, University of Chicago

  • Ruchi Gupta, Asthma Epidemiologist, Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine

  • John Howington, Chairman of Thoracic Surgery; Co-Director of the Thoracic Oncology Program, Saint Thomas Health

  • Tonya Winders, President and CEO, Allergy and Asthma Network

  • Donald Wuebbles, Harry E. Preble Endowed Professor, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Additional speakers and a detailed program agenda will be available in the coming days.

The Chest Foundation and Boehringer Ingelheim are Presenting Level Underwriters of “The Air We Breathe: An Atlantic Summit.” Dyson is a Supporting Level Underwriter.

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