Brendola, a small town in northern Italy, is on the hunt for six "odour evaluators" to detect bad smells. The mayor, Bruno Beltrame, started this campaign after locals near industrial areas complained about unpleasant odours. To join, candidates cannot have allergies or breathing problems like asthma. They must also have a car and a smartphone to use a special app for recording smells. The team will be trained by experts in odour measurement. Their job is to visit targeted spots, smell the air carefully, and record what they detect on the app. The project will last six months and aims to find the sources of these bad smells. Beltrame said, "We did a similar investigation about five years ago in an industrial area close to where the bad smells are coming from now. From that, we were able to identify the companies emitting the odours. Now we are broadening the geographical scope to find out if the same companies have resumed the release of bad smells or if there are different ones." Brendola is located near the Po Valley, one of Europe's most polluted regions. The mayor explained, "We're at the end of the valley just before the Alpine foothills. So it's a huge undertaking because these areas are among the most productive, but they’re also the ones at risk of creating pollution." Local authorities enforce strict rules and impose heavy fines on polluting businesses. Around 4,000 people live in Brendola, who have grown more environmentally conscious over the years. "Whereas previously they might have been a bit careless, today they are more inclined to want to improve their quality of life and surrounding environment. So when they see abandoned waste or smell foul air, they report it. We’re happy because it allows us to promptly intervene in order to prevent potentially worse catastrophes," said Beltrame. The town first advertised the jobs before Christmas but got no applicants, possibly because of the holiday season. After reposting on Facebook, about a dozen university students applied, eager to help during their free time. This unique effort combines local power, technology, and noses on the ground to fight pollution and make the air fresher for Brendola's people.