Otrivin, the leading pioneer in specialised healthcare solutions for nasal congestion, has brought the world’s first air-purifying Air Bubble to Egypt. The one-of-a-kind air-purifying structure offering an immersive and educational experience for children was opened for public viewing at Cairo’s National Museum of Egyptian Civilization on December 15th and was available until the 19th. Luckily, we were invited to the launch day to try out the Air Bubble and have gathered all the information about the innovative climate-directed action plan.
The Otrivin Air Bubble Experience
The Otrivin Air Bubble was developed in collaboration with ecoLogicStudio, an institution concerned with bio-solutions integrating nature-based technologies into architecture. It marks yet another project by Otrivin to tackle climate change and air pollution. The bubble was first launched in Warsaw, Poland, as a novel response to its status as the most polluted city in Europe. Since then, the bubble has travelled to Glasgow in the UK, following its hosting of the COP26 international climate conference to bring further awareness to biotechnology solutions concerned with accelerating green environments.
The Air Bubble is a fun and safe space with natural resources, air, water, and algae to actively filter and re-metabolise pollution particles and carbon dioxide. It encloses an environment made of a recyclable membrane with solely purified clean air to breathe, where the air within the bubble is 80% less polluted than the air outside the installation. This makes it a radical answer to the concerning global warming statistic suggesting that 93% of children globally breathe polluted air every day. What’s even more impressive about the bubble’s designed structure is its sustainable re-usage programme of microalgae flowing through its pipes.
After entering the bubble’s enclosed space, we can guarantee that every breath you take feels remarkably fresh and clean. Its structure replicates that of a bouncy house with the addition of inflated seating areas for kids. It has pipes filled with brightly coloured liquids of yellow and green, representing the “eating” of polluting particles and interchanging algae to clean air for breathing. The entire structure had us in awe, and its extraordinarily clean air made us not want to leave. But when we did climb out 15 minutes later, the difference in air quality was more than evident, signifying its necessity in an era of overwhelming pollution.
The Significance of the Air Bubble in Cairo
Following its visits to Warsaw and Glasgow, the Air Bubble brought its purified experience to Cairo. According to Nabil Besri, the General Manager of GSK Consumer Healthcare (member of the Haleon group) in North Africa, this purposeful choice comes from Cairo’s pollutant air levels being 11.7 times higher than the recommended “safe” level. So, offering such a clean experience to Cairo’s residents is meant to raise awareness of the necessity of “breathing normally and improving health” to induce change in cities that urgently need it.
Besri and Category Manager Nada Obaya also discussed the significance of the Air Bubble targeting children and the younger generation. According to them, it is necessary to target the newer and upcoming generations of young individuals as soon, they will be in charge of creating change and bettering the environment for themselves. Moreover, Otrivin and ecoLogicStudio’s demonstration of “simple and natural solutions” to climate change through their naturally resourced Air Bubble is thought to encourage these pioneering individuals to kickstart similarly simple solutions.
Besri also highlighted that “Egypt and Egypt’s government has been very much focused on helping reduce the impact of climate change and air pollution” through COP27 and more. Moreover, he claims that the country is more than capable of continuing environmentally friendly practices based on the endless amounts of creativity and talent flowing throughout its population. And he believes the Air Bubble plays “a message of hope” in its demonstration that there isn’t a need for “sophisticated machines to start change.”
The Air Bubble is next set to travel to additional populous Arab countries to inspire behavioural change. But that does not mean Otrivin’s efforts to harbour awareness and induce change in Egypt are over. The company aims to manufacture and invest in Egypt, such as creating new production sites to encourage the local production of materials. This will help reduce the carbon emissions relating to import transports. Nabil mentions his “strong belief in the Egyptian market,” which already relies heavily on local production.
