In partnership with the Universal Commons Project, Nesta hosted the first in a series of new events about how we measure social and natural capital. The focus on air quality reflects the Universal Commons Measurement Challenge; a new challenge prize to develop innovative metrics that address social and environmental externalities.

In conversations about social and natural capital, it helps when we’re all speaking the same language. Across the environmental sphere in particular, a plethora of single-use metrics have emerged, some laden with context and serving narrow purposes. The Universal Commons seeks to change this.

This was an evening of thought-provoking conversation about one of the biggest contributors to preventable death in our times, and how we measure it.