Air pollution is a serious environmental problem, one of many that arose as a byproduct of our modern way of life. Everything we do nowadays contributes in some way to air pollution. Our cars produce carbon emissions constantly, of course, but everything else pollutes the atmosphere too: our refrigerators, our pets, our aerosol sprays, our air conditioners, our factories, our electrical plants, everything contributes to air pollution. It all adds up and snowballs into a major problem, especially in urbanized areas.

As anybody who has lived in or around a large city (which is more than half of the world’s population as of a few years ago, by the way) can tell you, smog is a serious issue. It hangs over large cities like a filthy brown blanket, and when it gets too warm it descends upon the poor citizens, choking them out and even occasionally suffocating them to death.

This problem is becoming an international issue. According to the World Health Organization, more than 80 percent of urbanites are exposed to poor air that exceeds WHO safety limits. Ninety-eight percent of large cities in low- and middle-income countries are at risk and do not meet international air quality guidelines.

It’s an especially big problem in China, where air pollution is a serious matter. Beijing is consistently one of the dirtiest cities on the planet, which exceeds its national health standard by 1.3 times. The situation is so bad, the city is planning to list its smog as a fully fledged meteorological disaster.

China’s been casting about for a resolution to this problem for a while now, and recently a Dutch artist named Daan Roosegaarde has stepped up to the plate to provide an unusual, but eye-catching solution: a mobile construct called the Smog Free Tower.

This tower is a little over 20 feet tall and looks like something out of a Star Trek film: multi-tiered and a synthetic white color, contrasting sharply with dull buildings and a dirty sky. It was built primarily to “spur conversation”, but it’s also the world’s largest air purifier.

The Smog Free Tower sucks in the dirty air, and then releases it back out after scrubbing it of tiny dust particles. These particles are collected and eventually turned into tiny little jewels, making something beautiful out of pollution.

Roosegaarde is hoping to work with the Chinese government to create more towers- so far, only one exists, and it’s going to be taken on a tour of various cities in China to raise awareness. He cautions, however, that his design isn’t some sort of “magic bullet” that will solve all of China’s pollution problems. His hope, instead, is that it will help to inspire other citizens to come up with innovative and unique ways of fighting air pollution, even if they have to do it without government or corporate support.

“I hope the design I make will be part of a mentality change,” he told CNN. “I believe that creating a place where people can live, where they can feel the difference, smell the difference – that’s a very powerful motivator.”