Air Quality Matters

Air Quality Matters inside our buildings and out. This Podcast is about Indoor Air Quality, Outdoor Air Quality, Ventilation, and Health in our homes, workplaces, and education settings. And we already have many of the tools we need to make a difference. The conversations we have and how we share this knowledge is the key to our success. We speak with the leaders at the heart of this sector about them and their work, innovation and where this is all going. Air quality is the single most significant environmental risk we face to our health and wellbeing, and its impacts on us, our friends, our families, and society are profound. From housing to the workplace, education to healthcare, the quality of the air we breathe matters. Air Quality Matters

Air Quality Matters is a science podcast hosted by Simon Jones, with 139 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Simon Jones hosts Air Quality Matters, a science show with 139 episodes published.

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  Air Quality Matters

  Why Teachers Can't Be Human HVAC Controllers: Lessons from Madrid Classrooms

  Oct 1, 202611 min

  This week, we dive into a study published in Atmospheric Pollution Research titled Effects of Classroom Ventilation Management and User Activities on Indoor Air Quality in Madrid Primary Schools: A Two Year Field Study, to explore a question that fundamentally challenges how we think about school environments and indoor air quality: What if the single biggest barrier to delivering healthy classroom air isn't our lack of scientific knowledge or technology—but our complete failure to recognise that asking teachers to be human HVAC controllers, manually managing windows while teaching 30 active children in densely packed spaces, is a fragile, unstable and fundamentally unsustainable way to manage a building? Key Topics Discussed: The Research Design: A Two Year Behavioral Intervention Study: This Madrid study wanted to see if we could solve this problem through behavioral management alone. They set up a two year field study monitoring nine classrooms across four primary schools. During the first year, they just watched. They recorded business as usual, teachers and students opening and closing windows and doors completely freely based on whether they felt hot, cold or stuffy. Then in the second year, they intervened. They implemented a structured seasonal adapted manual ventilation protocol in one classroom per school, using the other classrooms as controls. This protocol was highly detailed. It scheduled specific window and door openings, such as five minutes at the start of the classroom, during every recess and during lunch breaks. And it adapted the width of the window opening based on whether it was freezing winter, mid season or a warm spring afternoon. The Human Factor: When Compliance Breaks Down: The biggest weakness of all is the human factor. A manual ventilation protocol is only as good as the people executing it. Compliance was highly erratic. In the dead of winter, teachers simply refused to open the windows because the cold drafts were unbearable. During exams or quiet study periods, windows stayed closed because the outdoor street noise was too distracting. If a teacher was in the middle of a complex, engaging lesson, they forgot about the protocol entirely. We are essentially asking teachers to be human HVAC controllers, managing drafts, noise, security and air quality, all while trying to teach 30 young children. It is a fragile, unstable and unsustainable way to manage a building. The Carbon Dioxide Results: Alarming Spikes and Protocol Limits: During lessons with closed windows, CO2 built up at an alarming rate, frequently soaring well past 1500 parts per million and even 2000 parts per million within 30 minutes. When the scheduled breaks arrived and the windows were opened, levels dropped rapidly. Did the structured protocol help? Yes, it did. The intervention classrooms had generally lower average CO2 levels than the business as usual classrooms. But even with strict compliance, they still recorded major CO2 spikes during long, densely occupied teaching blocks. It proved that in high density classrooms, manual natural ventilation simply cannot keep up. Passive window opening has physical limits, especially when wind speeds are low The Air Quality Matters Podcast in Partnership with Mann + Hummel https://www.mann-hummel.com/en.html Particles Plus https://particlesplus.com/ Eurovent (https://www.eurovent.eu/) - Aico (https://www.aico.co.uk/) - Lindab (https://www.lindab.ie/) - S&P UK (https://www.solerpalau.com/en-uk/) The One Take Podcast in Partnership with SafeTraces (https://www.safetraces.com/) - Inbiot (https://www.inbiot.es/?utm_campaign=simon&utm_source=airqualitymatters&utm_medium=podcast) - Farmwood (https://farmwood.co.uk/) - iE Electronics (https://www.eielectronics.ie/) and iAir Group (https://iair-group.com/) Zehnder https://www.zehndergroup.com/en Charity Partner - https://www.saferairproject.org/

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  Episode #131

  Healthy Housing: Connecting Research, Policy, and Communities

  Sep 28, 20261h 38m

  This week, we sit down with Amanda Reddy, Executive Director at the National Centre for Healthy Housing, to explore a question that fundamentally challenges how we think about housing quality and public health: What if the single biggest barrier to transforming housing quality isn't our lack of scientific knowledge or technology—but our complete failure to recognise that the places where we spend 70 percent of our lives, our homes, are either actively supporting or systematically undermining our health, and that fixing housing for the most vulnerable fixes it for everyone? Key Topics Discussed: Lead Is Not a Solved Problem: Half a million children in the United States are still exposed to lead levels that threaten their ability to learn and thrive every year. Lead affects neurodevelopment, lowers IQ, impairs executive function and increases the risk of conduct disorders. But it also affects adults. A World Bank study estimated that lead exposure causes five and a half million deaths globally each year, more than AIDS, malaria and road traffic deaths combined. The amount of lead required to poison a child is invisible. Imagine a sugar packet of lead contaminated dust spread evenly over an American football field. That is still enough to be hazardous. You cannot clean your way out of this problem. You have to eliminate the source. The Three Pillar Strategy: The National Centre for Healthy Housing operates through research, policy advocacy and community capacity building. They identify what works through rigorous evidence, advance those solutions through federal, state and local policy changes, and then support communities to implement those solutions on the ground. But they do not arrive with predetermined answers. Communities own the bus. They decide where they are going, how fast and what route to take. The Centre brings expertise, tools and evidence to help navigate barriers, but the solutions are shaped by the people who live the experience every day. Climate, Housing and Health Collide: Extreme heat now affects 70 percent of Americans. Housing is central to how communities weather climate events, whether heat, cold, hurricanes or wildfires. But much of the existing housing stock was not built for the climate we are experiencing today, let alone the climate we will face in 2050. Seventy percent of the homes that will exist in 2050 are already built. Energy efficiency retrofits that sealed homes to save energy are now trapping heat. Communities are calling for a right to cooled air as part of habitability, just as heating became a requirement a century ago. But air conditioning every home is not the answer. Refuge spaces, community cooling centres, heat island mitigation and building design all have a role. The challenge is ensuring climate solutions do not fall disproportionately on low income residents who contributed least to the problem. Military Housing and Cultural Barriers: Over the past decade, military families have raised serious concerns about housing conditions. Mould, water damage, lead and poor maintenance are widespread. Military families face unique cultural pressures that make it difficult to report problems or advocate for repairs. Fear of repercussions for service members creates a chilling effect. Yet the cost of inaction is profound. A service member worried about their family's safety at home is a readiness issue. GUEST: Amanda Reddy Executive Director, National Centre for Healthy Housing https://nchh.org/ The Air Quality Matters Podcast in Partnership with Mann + Hummel https://www.mann-hummel.com/en.html Particles Plus https://particlesplus.com/ Eurovent (https://www.eurovent.eu/) - Aico (https://www.aico.co.uk/) - Lindab (https://www.lindab.ie/) - S&P UK (https://www.solerpalau.com/en-uk/) The One Take Podcast in Partnership with SafeTraces (https://www.safetraces.com/) - Inbiot (https://www.inbiot.es/?utm_campaign=simon&utm_source=airqualitymatters&utm_medium=podcast) - Farmwood (https://farmwood.co.uk/) - iE Electronics (https://www.eielectronics.ie/) and iAir Group (https://iair-group.com/) Zehnder https://www.zehndergroup.com/en Charity Partner - https://www.saferairproject.org/

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  Air Quality Matters

  Energy Retrofits Don't Have to Ruin Your Air: What Irish Schools Teach Us

  Sep 25, 20267 min

  This week, we dive into a study published in Building and Environment titled The Impact of Energy Retrofit on Indoor Air Quality in Classrooms and Offices, to explore a question that fundamentally challenges how we think about building performance and climate action: What if the single biggest barrier to decarbonising our building stock isn't our lack of technology or ambition—but our complete failure to recognise that when we tighten buildings to save energy, we risk sealing in pollutants, moisture and carbon dioxide, turning our classrooms and offices into actively harmful environments unless we treat mechanical ventilation as an absolute physical necessity, not an optional luxury? Buildings in Europe are responsible for about 40 percent of our total energy consumption. If we are going to meet our climate and decarbonisation goals, we have to retrofit our existing building stock. There is no way around it. But there is a massive fear in our industry, and we have seen it happen time and time again, that when we tighten up these buildings to stop heat loss, we end up destroying indoor air quality. This Irish study is important because it did a rigorous pre and post retrofit evaluation of over 50 classrooms and offices, measuring CO2, fine particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, temperature, humidity and a whole suite of volatile organic compounds. Key Topics Discussed: The One Week Snapshot Problem: The biggest methodological limitation is that the monitoring campaigns are only one week long per phase. A week is just a snapshot in time. It does not capture seasonal variations. If the pre retrofit monitoring happened during a mild windy week in autumn when the windows were open and the post retrofit monitoring happened during a freezing calm winter day with everything shut down tight, the weather and teacher behaviour would heavily skew the results. A classroom environment is highly dynamic. The number of students, the specific lessons being taught, and even the type of cleaning products being used can vary wildly from one week to the next. This is a critical limitation that must be acknowledged when interpreting the results. The VOC Wildcard: The study noted that while ventilation improved overall, the response of volatile organic compounds was highly variable across different buildings. Why? Because energy retrofits introduce new synthetic materials into the built environment. New insulation, new sealants, new paints and sometimes new carpets and furniture. These materials off gas chemical compounds leading to short term spikes in total VOCs, even when the overall ventilation rate is technically higher. This is a critical warning to our industry. We cannot just focus on the ventilation rate. We must also practice strict source control by selecting low emitting natural materials during retrofits where we can or perhaps increase ventilation rates in the early stages of habitation of these spaces. The Carbon Dioxide Victory: Carbon dioxide concentrations in the retrofitted classrooms actually reduced by an average of 28 percent. That is a massive improvement. And why did this happen? It happened because the retrofits did not just focus on insulation and air tightness. They actively integrated mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. The Particulate Matter Win: PM2.5 levels decreased by 27 to 30 percent in both classrooms and offices. Before the retrofits, the buildings exceeded the WHO daily average guidelines for PM2.5 on 48 percent of the monitored days. After the retrofit, that number dropped to 26 percent. This is a huge public health victory, likely driven by the high efficiency filtration systems in the new mechanical ventilation units and tighter building envelopes keeping outdoor traffic pollution from leaking in. The Impact of Energy Retrofit on Indoor Air Quality in Classrooms and Offices 10.1016/j.buildenv.2026.114963 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2026.114963) The Air Quality Matters Podcast in Partnership with Mann + Hummel https://www.mann-hummel.com/en.html Particles Plus https://particlesplus.com/ Eurovent (https://www.eurovent.eu/) - Aico (https://www.aico.co.uk/) - Lindab (https://www.lindab.ie/) - S&P UK (https://www.solerpalau.com/en-uk/) The One Take Podcast in Partnership with SafeTraces (https://www.safetraces.com/) - Inbiot (https://www.inbiot.es/?utm_campaign=simon&utm_source=airqualitymatters&utm_medium=podcast) - Farmwood (https://farmwood.co.uk/) - iE Electronics (https://www.eielectronics.ie/) and iAir Group (https://iair-group.com/) Zehnder https://www.zehndergroup.com/en Charity Partner - https://www.saferairproject.org/

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  Episode #130

  Behind the Minister's Desk: What Politicians Actually Need from Scientists

  Sep 21, 20261h 16m

  This week, we sit down with Dennis Naughton, former Member of Parliament and Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in Ireland, to explore a question that fundamentally challenges how we think about science, policy and political decision making: What if the biggest barrier to transforming our built environment isn't our lack of scientific knowledge or technology—but our complete failure to recognise that the people who make policy decisions operate in a completely different world from researchers, and unless we learn to speak their language, translate evidence into clear actionable asks, and understand the brutal political realities they face, even the most overwhelming evidence will never make it through the door? Dennis brings a rare and fascinating perspective. He comes from science, having worked in food microbiology research, before spending over 28 years in Parliament. As a former Minister, he worked at the point where evidence, politics, public policy and implementation meet. Key Topics Discussed: The Three Audiences Problem: As a scientist, you are trained to communicate evidence to peers so they can repeat your study. As a politician, you have three completely different audiences. First, you have to convince your cabinet colleagues that this is a good idea, because if you don't have a majority, your proposal is dead. Second, you have to convince the finance ministry, because most policy changes have a financial cost. Third, you have to convince the public that this is worth doing. Researchers often present to policymakers as if they are speaking to technical experts. The evidence goes way over their heads. The facts don't change, but how you frame them must. The Blank Page Reality: One of the hardest decisions any minister can make is a decision with a blank page in front of you, with no evidence and no base whatsoever. Even partial evidence, even evidence with caveats, is infinitely better than nothing. When politicians work off a blank page, they go back to ideology. If the research community can provide even incomplete evidence, it gives policymakers a framework to start. But here's the reality. Politicians don't make evidence-based decisions. They make evidence-informed decisions. There are economic, social, cultural and political factors that must be weighed. Evidence is critical, but it's not the only input. The Six Question Framework: Every researcher needs to be able to answer six questions if they want policy impact. What is the problem you are trying to solve? Why is it a problem? How are you proposing to solve it? What is the policy ask? What is the difference if that policy ask is delivered? What is the barrier to implementing that policy? If you can answer those six questions and frame them in the context of the three C's, clarity, context and connection to people, you will have something powerful that resonates with both policymakers and decision makers. Political Capital is Finite: Politics is a rough business. You only have a certain amount of political capital. If you use it up on the wrong proposals, you are not heard. Worse, if you push something through cabinet and it fails in Parliament, or if it passes Parliament but the public revolts, you have burned capital and damaged your reputation. Every proposal a minister brings forward, they are putting their name, their reputation and their career on the line. That is why timing, framing and understanding the political landscape is everything. Ministers only bring proposals to cabinet when they know they will get approval. The skill is in reading the room, building the coalitions and presenting the case in a way that lands with peers, with finance and with the public. GUEST: Dennis Naughten https://www.linkedin.com/in/denis-naughten-77231112/ The Air Quality Matters Podcast in Partnership with Mann + Hummel https://www.mann-hummel.com/en.html Particles Plus https://particlesplus.com/ Eurovent (https://www.eurovent.eu/) - Aico (https://www.aico.co.uk/) - Lindab (https://www.lindab.ie/) - S&P UK (https://www.solerpalau.com/en-uk/) The One Take Podcast in Partnership with SafeTraces (https://www.safetraces.com/) - Inbiot (

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  Air Quality Matters

  27 Member States, One Deadline: The Race to Transform European Buildings

  Sep 17, 20268 min

  This week, we dive into a landmark policy paper published in Building and Environment titled Integrating Health and Indoor Air Quality into European Building Policy: A Landmark Policy Shift, to explore a question that fundamentally challenges how we think about building performance and public health: What if the single biggest barrier to transforming our built environment isn't our lack of scientific knowledge or technology—but our complete failure to recognise that the very directive designed to decarbonise European buildings has, for decades, systematically ignored the health of the people breathing the air inside them, until now? Key Topics Discussed: The Directive Versus Regulation Problem: The biggest weakness of the EPBD recast is that it is a directive, not a regulation. The European Union cannot dictate exact binding indoor air quality numbers or ventilation rates. It is up to each of the 27 member states to write these requirements into their own national laws and building codes by May 2026. This is where the real danger lies. We are at risk of a heavily fragmented European market. Some progressive countries might adopt strict health-based limits, while others, concerned about short-term compliance costs for developers, might do the absolute bare minimum. A race to the bottom. The Paper Compliance Risk: There is a major risk of paper compliance, where buildings are designed and certified to meet high indoor environmental quality standards on paper, but in reality, the ventilation systems are turned off, uncommissioned, or poorly maintained once the occupants move in. Many member states simply do not have the technical infrastructure, the trained inspectors, or the enforcement mechanisms to monitor indoor environmental quality on an ongoing basis. Without strict enforcement and penalties, these new laws risk becoming toothless tigers. The RHEVA Model: To combat fragmentation, the authors make a strong call to action for member states to adopt a harmonised, health-based framework. They point to the REVA model, Indoor Environmental Quality Regulation, as the gold standard, ready-to-adopt framework. REVA recommends continuous monitoring of two key parameters: PM2.5 and CO2. PM2.5 is a direct measure of exposure to fine particulate matter, which has devastating long-term health consequences. CO2 serves as a real-time proxy for overall ventilation adequacy and airborne infection risk. Countries Leading the Way: Belgium has a history of air quality legislation dating back to 1946. In 2022, they passed a comprehensive law that treats indoor air quality in public spaces as a right-to-know issue, requiring monitoring, certification and public labelling. France is also leading by requiring indoor air quality monitoring in schools and nurseries to protect sensitive populations. These examples prove that robust, enforceable indoor air quality legislation is not only possible, but already happening. Integrating health and indoor air quality into European building policy: A landmark policy shift Building and Environment https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2026.114508 The Air Quality Matters Podcast in Partnership with Mann + Hummel https://www.mann-hummel.com/en.html Particles Plus https://particlesplus.com/ Eurovent (https://www.eurovent.eu/) - Aico (https://www.aico.co.uk/) - Lindab (https://www.lindab.ie/) - S&P UK (https://www.solerpalau.com/en-uk/) The One Take Podcast in Partnership with SafeTraces (https://www.safetraces.com/) - Inbiot (

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