This year, the University of California at Berkeley estimated that nearly 1.6 billion people die in China a year with all related causes. Whether through heart failure, lung failure, or a stroke, people of varying ages are falling in China like the snow will soon fall here in this sleepy state. This death toll has grown as quickly as the grey smog in the sky over China has since the early 2000s. The air pollution in China is playing death's advocate and is doing a fine job.

In Beijing there is a haze that makes life more difficult than anyone of us realize unless we've been there. It shuts down places of business, schools, churches of all denominations- it cripples a portion of a country. When the smog reaches extreme levels, citizens are often confined to their homes, or whatever building they were in, sometimes for several days. Children away from their parents because they're trapped at school, or left alone at home because their parents are trapped at the store.

On December 7th, PM2.5 levels reached hazardous heights causing red alert issues to be broadcasted and people confined to whatever building was closest for them. These particles come from various things like cars, smelting and processing metal, and burning plants and trash into the atmosphere. The particle level was at 500, and the World Health Organization decrees that anything over 300 is hazardous.

Just this past Saturday, Beijing was at risk for asphyxiating itself with the smog it created. Levels reached even higher than they earlier in the month and a second red alert was issued for citizens.

So what's being done about this?

It shouldn't take a Christmas miracle to keep the people of Beijing safe. And amongst all the smog a plan is being forged for change. In September, China released news of plans for a different version of the cap-and-trade system that would reduce their greenhouse gas effect drastically. Simultaneously, Paris intends to rally with other countries to limit the results of climate change like emissions and temperature rises. But this is only the beginning.

Don't take clean air in your lungs for granted, because somewhere on the other side of the world a little girl wants to know what it's like to go a day without breathing through a mask.