First WHO Europe Indoor Air Conference (2)

20 September 2023
Bern, Switzerland

Making a Step Change in Indoor Environments for Human Health

Event Resources

The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the importance of ventilation to mitigate the transmission of respiratory disease.

Beyond COVID-19 there is growing awareness that exposure to pollutants in indoor environments has a substantial impact on health, productivity and performance. Large numbers of buildings do not have good ventilation or good indoor air quality, and there are multiple other considerations including climate change, energy, comfort, noise and security.

We need to learn the lessons of the pandemic and build better after COVID-19 for the health of future generations. The focus of the meeting is to consider what is needed at a strategic level to make effective change to improve indoor environments in buildings. We will explore the practical challenges and opportunities for understanding and mitigating poor ventilation in the most cost-effective ways.

Objective

Make a case for why we need to monitor and improve indoor air in buildings, including:

The importance of the challenge for both infectious disease and wider health
That air quality in public buildings is not in the control of individuals and therefore it is the responsibility of the government/organisation to ensure IAQ and ventilation are sufficient
The need to link with net-zero, that some net-zero actions may be locking in IAQ problems and that there are win-win solutions
Experiences of what can be done including bringing in air quality monitoring and implementing technology solutions such as air cleaning

Making a step change

Conference Agenda

Morning

Scientific Session

11:00 - 12:30

Catherine Noakes OBE (Moderator)

Professor of Environmental Engineering for Buildings, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

Opening words

David Vernez

Professor, Head of Department, Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), University of Lausanne, Switzerland

The indoor environment as a determinant for health

Pawel Wargocki

Associate Professor, International Center for Indoor Environment and Energy,
Technical University of Denmark, Denmark

What do we need to achieve in buildings? What is realistic vs what is ideal?

Corinne Mandin

Head of the Laboratory of Epidemiology,
Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety, France

What do we know about the current state of IAQ in buildings?

Hossein Gorji

Scientist at Empa, Adjunct Research Assistant Professor at University of Southern California (USC)

Infection risk and IAQ in Swiss schools

Andreas Prenner

Policy Officer at HERA (European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority)

Pandemic management through indoor pathogen transmission suppression - EU innovation funding

Q&A Discussion with all speakers

Lunch: Meet the Scientists

12:30 - 13:10

Afternoon

13:10 - 14:55

Welcome and Keynotes

13:10 - 13:30

Antoine Flahault (Moderator)

Director of the Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland

Welcome and Introduction

Hans Kluge

Regional Director of WHO/Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark

Keynote Address

Sir Jeremy Farrar OBE

WHO Chief Scientist

Keynote Address

Nora Kronig Romero

Ambassador, Head of International Affairs Division, Vice Director, Member of Senior management
Federal Office of Public Health

Keynote Address

Frank Vandenbroucke

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Affairs and Public Health, Belgium

Keynote Address

From Science to Policy

13:30 - 14:10

Catherine Noakes OBE

Professor of Environmental Engineering for Buildings, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

Challenge and opportunity for Indoor Air - Learning from the pandemic

Roger Waeber

Head of Indoor Pollutants Unit, Health Protection Directorate, FOPH, Switzerland

Improving ventilation in Swiss buildings – IAQ as part of sustainability

Jelle Laverge

Associate Professor, Ghent University, Belgium

Compliance through information sharing in Belgium

Claude-Alain Roulet

Prof. Emer. EPFL, private consultant EPFL, Switzerland

Priorities for improving indoor air in Switzerland

Discussion Panel

14:10 - 14:45

Kamran Abbasi (Moderator)

Editor in Chief of the British Medical Journal, London, United Kingdom

Chairman

Martin Bäumle

Member of National Council, Green'Liberal Group

Panelist

Esther Friedli

Member of the Council of States, Democratic Union of the Center

Panelist

Gabriela Suter

Member of National Council, Socialist Group

Panelist

Closing remarks

14:45 - 14:55

Hans Kluge

Regional Director of WHO/Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark

Closing Remarks

Important note:

During the event we will maintain and continuously monitor good indoor air quality, thanks to appropriate ventilation and air filtration.
The event will be held in English and simultaneously translated in French, German and Russian.
La conférence aura lieu en anglais mais elle offrira aussi une traduction simultanée en français, allemand et russe.
Die Veranstaltung wird in englischer Sprache abgehalten und simultan in Französisch, Deutsch und Russisch übersetzt.
Swiss healthcare professionals:
Participating in this event, both in person and online, will validate four (4) FMH credits awarded by the Swiss Public Health Doctors “SPHD”.

Professionnels de la santé suisses:
Participer à cet événement, en personne et en ligne, vous permettra de valider quatre (4) crédits FMH délivrés par l’association SPHD « Swiss Public Health Doctors ».

Schweizer Gesundheitsfachleute:
Für die Teilnahme an dieser Veranstaltung (sowohl vor Ort als auch online) können Sie 4 FMH-Kredit-Punkte erhalten.

Event Resources

Together, let's build the health of tomorrow

Address:

Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa.
Bahnhofplatz 11, 3001 Bern

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First WHO/Europe Indoor Air​ Conference

20 September 2023 Bern, Switzerland

Making a Step Change in Indoor Environments for Human Health

Objective

Making a step change

Confer​ence Agenda

Morning

Scientific Session

Catherine Noakes OBE (Moderator)

Professor of Environmental Engineering for Buildings, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

Opening words

David Vernez

Professor, Head of Department, Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), University of Lausanne, Switzerland

The indoor environment as a determinant for health

Pawel Wargocki

Associate Professor, ​International Center for Indoor Environment and Energy,Technical University of Denmark, Denmark

What do we need to achieve in buildings? What is realistic vs what is ideal?

Corinne Mandin

Head of the Laboratory of Epidemiology,Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety, France

What do we know about the current state of IAQ in buildings?

Hossein Gorji

Scientist at Empa, Adjunct Research Assistant Professor at University of Southern California (USC)

Infection risk and IAQ in Swiss schools

Andreas Prenner

Policy Officer at HERA (European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority)

Pandemic management through indoor pathogen transmission suppression - EU innovation funding

Q&A Discussion with all speakers

Lunch: Meet the Scientists

Afternoon

Welcome and Keynotes

Antoine Flahault (Moderator)

Director of the Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Switzerland

Welcome and Introduction

Hans Kluge

Regional Director of WHO/Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark

Keynote Address

Sir Jeremy Farrar OBE

WHO Chief Scientist

Keynote Address

Nora Kronig Romero

Ambassador, Head of International Affairs Division, Vice Director, Member of Senior managementFederal Office of Public Health

Keynote Address

Frank Vandenbroucke

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Affairs and Public Health, Belgium

Keynote Address

From Science to Policy

Catherine Noakes OBE

Professor of Environmental Engineering for Buildings, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

Challenge and opportunity for Indoor Air - Learning from the pandemic

Roger Waeber

Head of Indoor Pollutants Unit, Health Protection Directorate, FOPH, Switzerland

Improving ventilation in Swiss buildings – IAQ as part of sustainability

Jelle Laverge

Associate Professor, Ghent University, Belgium

Compliance through information sharing in Belgium

Claude-Alain Roulet

Prof. Emer. EPFL, private consultant EPFL, Switzerland

Priorities for improving indoor air in Switzerland

Discussion Panel

Kamran Abbasi (Moderator)

Editor in Chief of the British Medical Journal, London, United Kingdom

Chairman

Martin Bäumle

Member of National Council, Green'Liberal Group

Panelist

Esther Friedli

Member of the Council of States, Democratic Union of the Center

Panelist

Gabriela Suter

Member of National Council, Socialist Group

Panelist

Closing remarks

Hans Kluge

Regional Director of WHO/Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark

Closing Remarks

First WHO/Europe Indoor Air Conference

20 September 2023
Bern, Switzerland

Conference Agenda

Associate Professor, International Center for Indoor Environment and Energy,
Technical University of Denmark, Denmark

Head of the Laboratory of Epidemiology,
Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety, France

Ambassador, Head of International Affairs Division, Vice Director, Member of Senior management
Federal Office of Public Health