Agência Mural leverages AI for climate information access
Discover how this local news organisation is using AI to deliver personalised weather and air quality alerts, helping underserved communities in Greater São Paulo respond to climate risks
A prototype page of the new climate alert tool.
By: Cleber Arruda and Vagner de Alencar
On a drizzly day that turned into a storm, Guilherme Sampaio, 30, found himself trapped for more than three hours inside a pharmacy in Osasco, a city in the São Paulo metropolitan area. “The water even got inside the store”, he recalls. The hairdresser’s experience is not unique: flooding, sudden weather changes, and dry air affect thousands of residents in Greater São Paulo’s underserved communities, who feel the impact of climate change in their daily lives.
In response, Agência Mural de Jornalismo das Periferias is developing the Local Climate Alert, as part of the JournalismAI Innovation Challenge, supported by the Google News Initiative (GNI). The service aims to inform residents about air quality and weather changes in five key areas: Guarulhos, Osasco, and Mauá – cities in Brazil’s largest metro region – and Capão Redondo and Itaim Paulista, districts within the city of São Paulo.
In partnership with Agência Tatu, a data journalism startup, the initiative combines artificial intelligence and public data to send automated, personalised updates about the weather and air quality directly to residents' phones.
The information will be generated usingAI tools and verified by a Mural editor in accordance with the organisation’s editorial guidelines. In addition to being sent to subscribers, the alerts will also be published on Mural’s website, increasing local visibility in search engines.
The tool will serve five territories in Greater São Paulo: Capão Redondo, Itaim Paulista, Guarulhos, Osasco, and Mauá—home to over 2.9 million people combined.
From idea to pilot
From the start, the project focused on four main goals: providing real-time environmental information; creating an automated, accessible, and reliable system; strengthening community resilience to environmental risks through practical guidance; and translating technical data into useful services for local residents.
Between January and April 2025, the team organised the work in phases. First, they brought together local journalists, strategic partners, and specialists to identify five neighborhoods to prioritise in the pilot.
Next, Mural conducted a survey with 402 residents from these regions to understand their information consumption habits and main environmental concerns. Based on this data, a minimum viable product (MVP) is being developed and tested. Still underway, the third phase involves launching a campaign and creating visual content tailored to the user experience.
Alongside these steps, the team participated in the Digital Product Development Journey, an initiative by Google News Initiative (GNI) in Brazil, where they refined their value proposition, validated key challenges, and learned how to develop a market entry plan.
90% of residents surveyed said they have experienced climate-related issues in their neighborhoods, such as flooding or poor air quality.
Simple, direct, and effective
Early results show how relevant the project is: 77% of respondents expressed interest in using the service, and 90% reported facing environmental problems in their neighborhoods. Most (85%) preferred to receive alerts in simple text format.
The team is currently testing different approaches to ensure messages are clear and technically accurate. The use of generative AI via OpenAI's API has shown promise but is still in the testing phase. As an alternative, they’re exploring templated messages with automatic variables to maintain greater control over the content – especially given the strict standards of WhatsApp’s API, which is expected to be the main distribution channel, depending on costs.
A key element in the project’s development has been the involvement of local correspondents – known as muralistas – who work directly in the communities, engaging residents and building trust in the service.
The creation of the Local Climate Alert becomes even more relevant in a year when Brazil will host COP 30, the UN’s global climate change conference, scheduled for November in Belém. Amid international discussions, the project highlights how local actions, particularly in urban peripheries, can support climate adaptation and democratise access to environmental information.
Text messages are the preferred format for receiving climate alerts, followed by images and videos, according to respondents.
Pathways for expansion
With tests already underway and an initial contact base of 517 individuals (245 via WhatsApp and 272 by email), Mural is preparing for its next stages. In early July, the automated alert bot will be completed, and by the end of the month, the platform will officially launch with the first in-person event in the selected territories. In August, a continuous feedback tool will be implemented, followed by the delivery of a final impact report.
In the long term, the organisation aims to expand the project to other areas of Greater São Paulo and inspire other local media outlets to replicate the model in their own cities.
The partnership with Agência Tatu, based in Brazil’s Northeast, also reinforces a commitment to knowledge exchange and building networks of innovation in independent journalism and technology.
All of this makes the Local Climate Alert both an informative service and a tangible response to inequality in access to information – a tool of citizenship for those most affected by the climate emergency.
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This article is part of a series providing updates from 35 grantees on the JournalismAI Innovation Challenge, supported by the Google News Initiative. Click here to read other articles from our grantees.