Every year on November 8th, the world turns its attention to the often-unseen hero of public health: ventilation. On this World Ventil8 Day, the Global Open Air Quality Standards (GO AQS) proudly joins the global community in raising awareness about the profound impact of fresh air on our health, productivity, and overall well-being.

At GO AQS, we hold a firm belief: ventilation is not merely a utility, but a crucial, non-negotiable tool for maintaining an excellent indoor environment, air quality wise. Our commitment is to establish and advocate for standards that transform our indoor spaces—from homes and offices to hospitals and schools—into zones of clean air security.

The Standard for Safety: Ventilation in Schools

The greatest illustration of ventilation’s critical role lies in its ability to protect the most vulnerable. Consider our schools, where densely populated spaces can become high-risk environments for the spread of airborne pathogens.

Based on rigorous risk assessment modeling (Morawska et al., 2024), GO AQS recommends a robust ventilation rate of 14 liters/s per person (liters per second per person), which translates to approximately 8.7 air changes per hour (ACH) for a classroom of 150 m3 (5297 ft3) occupied by 25 students and 1 teacher (26 total people).

This recommendation is a targeted public health measure. The underlying risk assessment model specifically considered a realistic classroom scenario:

• Goal: To keep the reproduction number (Re​) below 1, even for highly transmissible respiratory pathogens like the SARS-CoV-2 Delta and Omicron variants, and measles.
• Exposure: The model assumed susceptible individuals were in the microenvironment for the same duration (1 hour) as one infected student.
• Infectious Particle Emission: The infected student’s infectious particle emission was modeled to occur through 80% oral respiration and 20% phonation.

By mandating and achieving this level of air change, we can effectively dilute and remove infectious aerosols, creating a physical barrier against disease transmission that supplements other mitigation strategies.

Beyond Pathogens: The Control of Chemical Pollutants

The power of effective ventilation extends well beyond viral control. Clean air strategies must also address the insidious accumulation of chemical pollutants.

When used wisely, mechanical and natural ventilation systems are essential for preventing the buildup of substances like Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). These common pollutants—emitted from furniture, cleaning products, building materials, and more—can lead to poor air quality, causing symptoms ranging from headaches and irritation to more serious long-term health effects. Continuous, targeted ventilation ensures that these harmful compounds are constantly exhausted and replaced with fresh outdoor air, safeguarding the health of building occupants in a comprehensive manner.

This World Ventil8 Day, GO AQS calls on policymakers, building owners, and educators to recognize ventilation not as an expense, but as an indispensable investment in human health infrastructure. Let us work together to ensure that every breath taken indoors is a breath of clean, safe, and healthy air.

Reference

Morawska, L., Allen, J., Bahnfleth, W., Bennett, B., Bluyssen, P. M., Boerstra, A., Buonanno, G., Cao, J., Dancer, S. J., Floto, A., Franchimon, F., Greenhalgh, T., Haworth, C., Hogeling, J., Isaxon, C., Jimenez, J. L., Kennedy, A., Kumar, P., Kurnitski, J., . . . Yao, M. (2024). Mandating indoor air quality for public buildings. Science, 383(6690), 1418–1420. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adl0677