part of Indoor air quality
This project generated new scientific knowledge about the early life course origins, burden, determinants, and prognostic significance of non-communicable lung disease in Kenya by studying the lung health of children and adolescents from two very different communities.
TUPUMUE will use participatory theatre to engage with Mukuru residents about health issues. Photo: theteam25 / Wikimedia Commons.
Photo: theteam25 / Wikimedia Commons.
TUPUMUE, or “let’s breathe” in Swahili, was a partnership between Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) and was jointly funded by the National Research Foundation (NRF) of Kenya and the Medical Research Council (MRC) of the UK.
The project, which lasted 3 years, generated new scientific knowledge about the early life course origins, burden, determinants, and prognostic significance of non-communicable lung disease in Kenya by studying the lung health of children and adolescents from two very different communities.
The project focused on children and young adults aged 5 to 18, the age at which lungs are developing and ill effects at this time of life can impact future health. We worked in two locations: an informal settlement (Mukuru) and a wealthier area (Buruburu). These two areas are geographically very close but very different in terms of their socioeconomic make up.
The study also used participatory theatre to help explore community knowledge about what damages lungs, and the lived experience of air pollution and lung health. The results of the study were fed back to the two communities, also via the medium of theatre, as well as other creative outlets such as comics and murals.
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