Bilston’s revival: the pursuit of happiness in a Black Country town

In the 1940s, the West Midlands town of Bilston had been scarred by years of coal mining, with thousands of its houses uninhabitable – so it invited the philosopher Otto Neurath to become its ‘happiness consultant’. Did it work?

Air pollution causes wrinkles and premature ageing, new research shows

Toxic fumes may be the primary cause of skin ageing in polluted cities such as London, New York and Beijing, scientists say

How Brexit could damage our health

We would lose drug research and health service funding as well as free treatment in Europe, and we’d have no external arbiters of food, air and water quality. This is dangerous

Why toxic air is every family’s problem – cartoon

Air pollution has been linked to child mental illness. Are we all doing our bit?

How a giant air freshener could save our polluted cities

Air pollution kills 28,000 people every year in the UK. But the solution might lie in a hi-tech tower that sucks up harmful particles

Lazy Britons are missing out on the joy of walking

Half of us are reluctant to get on our feet for more than 20 minutes. Compared to the progress made on cycling, for walkers it’s been pedestrian

Air fresheners, joss sticks, deodorants – and other killers in our midst

A new report says a wide range of household items act as pollutants in our homes. So, how can we improve the quality of the air we breathe?

Introducing ‘treeconomics’: how street trees can save our cities

As a fight over 11 lime trees in Sheffield escalates, activists in cities all over the world are making the case for urban trees – to cut pollution, increase land value and even make you feel younger

We’re exposed to hormone-disrupting BPA just by breathing

Manufacturing and wastewater treatment sites are releasing bisphenol A into the air, exposing people to high levels of the chemical, according to a study

The sound of silence: is cutting out noise the answer to a stress-free life?

More than half of us feel that noise in the workplace affects our performance, while the constant onslaught of sound in our daily lives can damage our health