Kate McLean-MacKenzie is charting the distinctive smells of cities around the world.
The University of Kent researcher wants smells to be shared as easily as images or sounds.
Her work involves guided “smell walks”, where participants record scents, intensity, and emotional associations.
The results are turned into visual maps and cultural narratives.
Since 2011, she has mapped more than 40 locations, including Paris, Glasgow, Kyiv, and Kolkata.
The project highlights how smells shape personal and collective experiences of cities.
McLean-MacKenzie says smell maps capture fleeting moments rather than permanent records.
They may also become historical documents as cities change over time.
She hopes the atlas encourages people to engage more deeply with their surroundings.
Even familiar events like Christmas, she notes, smell very different across cultures.
