Air Hub: Engineering healthy indoor environments

People spend most of their lives in a variety of indoor environments. This occurs principally in homes, but also in schools, workplaces, and health and care environments. Scientists, practitioners and the public are increasingly aware of the impact of poor quality buildings on health and wellbeing, as emphasized in the last few years with the tragic death of Awaab Ishak from indoor mold and the role of ventilation design in the spread of SARS-CoV-2. Poor outdoor air quality from PM2.5, NO2, and ozone exposures was estimated to contribute to 17,000 premature deaths and 345,000 Disability Adjusted Life Years lost in 2021 in the UK, making it the single most important environmental contributor to the burden of disease. However, there is much we still do not understand about indoor air quality. We cannot simply transfer our understanding from outside air research to the complex indoor environment - both the composition of pollutants and the airflows that carry them are vastly different, creating a complex set of exposures we do not yet understand. The drive to net-zero provides substantial opportunities for building and retrofitting buildings to make them healthier as well as energy efficient. Yet, this also poses substantial risks for increasing poor building quality, and reducing air exchange and dilution of pollutants. Further, it is well understood that a focus on the performance of an engineered system without considering the role of the users leads to underperforming systems. This has been well demonstrated in buildings where ventilation systems are often not used appropriately, are ill maintained, and are sometimes even switched off and covered up, all resulting in a buildup of pollutants and often a reduction in air quality post retrofit. Through this network we intend to tackle the challenge of creating healthier indoor air for everyone, including a focus on the most vulnerable. We will achieve this we will create collaborations and co-design research projects around the question “How much and what is in PM2.5 indoors, what are its health impacts, and what are the most effective and equitable ways to reduce those impacts?”. Specific network activities will include: Co-creating feasibility studies and research proposals with members of the public, particularly those sensitive to the effects of poor indoor air quality. Developing collaborations between a range of health expert, engineers and indoor air scientists to inspire novel approaches to assess health implications of poor indoor air quality by making better use of the existing UK birth cohorts. Working with industry to understand current and near future technologies for delivering healthy indoor environments and the industrial perspective of the related research needs. Exploring sampling methods to better understand the constituents of PM5. Both using static samplers and personal samplers to capture variations in exposure as an individual travels through a range of engineered environments that they encounter in their daily life. Exploring the ethical implications of personal air quality sampling with academics and members of the public to develop research protocols that acquire useful and robust datasets while respecting a participants privacy and ensuring ethically sound research. Engaging with a wide academic audience through a mix of online and in person events. In particular developing the future research capacity of the UK by providing specific early career training and support to apply to our feasibility fund.