Air pollution in urban environments causes many premature deaths each year, and that number will grow as urban populations increase. Anu Ramaswami, PhD, led an international research team that recently published a study showing that using the heat generated from industrial processes for heating and cooling other buildings would result in fewer pollutants being generated by cities. The study used new models and data sets representing 637 Chinese cities to quantify, for the first time on this scale, the potential benefits of such energy and materials exchanges. Prof. Ramaswami is Director of the Center for Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy, a Consortium member. The study was published in the journal Nature Climate Change; an article about this research also appears on the Office of the Vice President for Research Inquiry blog.