Post Category Climate

Across the United States, buildings are responsible for a large portion of greenhouse gas emissions – nearly 30%. Many plans to meet our climate goal of net zero emissions involve switching those buildings that currently run on fossil fuel energy sources, such as oil and natural gas, to electricity generated by renewable energy sources. This […]

The CoBE team – with researchers from Harvard Healthy Buildings program, Oregon State University College of Engineering, and Boston University School of Public Health –  reports on a novel method for calculating health and climate impacts of building energy savings. Here are three key takeaways from our study. Buildings consume 40% of energy in the U.S., so changes in […]

In collaboration with the University of Hawai’i at Manoa (UH) and community members, researchers of the Harvard Healthy Buildings Program are collecting data to examine human health risks of wildfire-related pollutants in homes following the Maui wildfires last August. The study is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and aims to assess a comprehensive […]

August 8 marks the one-year anniversary of the Lahaina wildfires, which caused devastating loss of life, community, and homes. Researchers in Hawaii and across the U.S. have been working to understand the ongoing environmental and health impacts of the wildfires. The Harvard Healthy Buildings Program is one of those teams. In partnership with local community […]

Did you know that some high performance air filters use electrostatic charges to improve particle removal efficiencies? Did you know that wildfire smoke can reduce the effectiveness of these filters? Continue reading below to learn more about air quality and health impacts from wildfires or jump straight to the filtration section to learn more about steps to […]

Last week, the Biden-Harris administration hosted the White House Summit on Sustainable and Healthy K-12 School Buildings and Grounds. Clean energy, safe drinking water, and indoor air quality are key pillars of the White House’s action plan to improve schools’ health across the country. Healthy Buildings director Joseph Allen shares his key takeaways from the summit […]