IAQ and occupant health

Poor indoor air quality is increasingly recognised as a hidden health risk, driving respiratory problems, exacerbating chronic disease, and accelerating the transmission of airborne infections

AIRAH Advocacy and Policy Manager Mark Vender speaks with ASHRAE Fellow and Distinguished Lecturer Robert Bean, whose occupant-first philosophies have sparked an entirely different way of thinking about HVAC design.

Ecolibrium speaks with Distinguished Professor Lidia Morawska about an ambitious QUT project to provide world-leading indoor air quality monitoring and control in a university building.

With a dedicated humidity workshop taking place during IAQ26 in Cairns, AIRAH’s IAQ Special Technical Group (STG) reflects on the importance of humidity control.

With Standards Australia recently adopting a mould remediation standard, we look at how this hidden killer can harm both building occupants and HVAC&R technicians.

Ecolibrium speaks with Jess Ward, whose experience with mould-related illness led to an extraordinary career change.

Australians own and use an excessive amount of floor space compared to other countries. Laura Timberlake explores how going small can have big benefits for thermal performance, heating and cooling costs, and the embodied carbon of residential buildings.

We look back at the major discussions from AIRAH’s 2025 Indoor Air Quality Conference (IAQ25), which was held in Melbourne from May 26–27.

Sonia Holzheimer, M.AIRAH, reflects on the good, the bad, and the ugly misunderstood aspects of AS 1668.2.

When Dr Mali Rezaei moved into a one-bedroom rental in Melbourne’s southeast in 2021, she had no idea how severely her life would be affected by mould.

Amy Lewis from the Safer Air Project introduces a toolkit for making events safe, accessible, and inclusive for those at risk from poor IAQ.

We’ve all heard the saying “hot air rises”. Daniel Bonatti, M.AIRAH, explains why this phenomenon occurs, how our understanding has evolved over time, and what it means for practical applications in building design.

An important changeover of filter standards is underway in Australia, but industry has so far been slow to move.

After mould-related illness turned Brandon Chappo’s life upside down, he co-founded Change the Air Foundation to do provide a voice for the millions of others affected.

This technical paper provides a systematic review and comparison of existing and next-generation air cleaning technologies.

Clive Broadbent, L.AIRAH, discusses how climate change and increases in surface water temperatures could potentially encourage the growth of bacteria that prefer warm water (mesophiles), including Legionella.

A report launched at Parliament House in November has highlighted the human impact of poor indoor air quality, framing it as an access and inclusion issue.

A research centre at Queensland University of Technology has set out an ambitious range of projects to build our knowledge of indoor air quality