Trillions of Tiny Flying Particles

Last month it was revealed that 98% of Europeans are breathing toxic air. We’re slowly realising that the modern world is covered in the dust of environmental devastation, from particle air pollution to nuclear fallout and dried-up lakes. And as life on Earth gets hotter and drier, it’s going to get even dustier.

As Jay Owens tells Eleanor Penny, dust might seem like nothing much at all, but only by paying attention to the tiniest particles can we really understand the scale of our impact on the planet and our own health. From 15th century sea coal fumes to fires at the Foxconn factory, Jay draws attention to the unequal horrors of pollution over centuries of capitalist production.

Dust: The Modern World in a Trillion Particles is published by Hachette.

Catch up with our interview with Jem Bendell about adapting to environmental disaster and the need for “post-doom politics”.

Photo by Joseph Plotz/NWS/NOAA.