Indoor Air 2026

Keynote Session

Singapore's Green Mark Journey towards Greater Health and Wellbeing

The BCA Green Mark Scheme (GM) is Singapore's green building rating tool, designed for tropical and sub-tropical climates. What began in 2005 primarily focused on energy efficiency has evolved into a comprehensive framework that places occupant health and wellbeing as one of its cores, addressing Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), natural lighting, acoustic comfort, and biophilic design.

As Singapore's cornerstone sustainability tool, GM directly supports the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and Green Building Masterplans, becoming essential as urbanisation and climate challenges intensify.

The COVID-19 pandemic catalysed significant advances through the government's collaborative response works, updating Singapore Standards SS553 and SS554 that incorporate ASHRAE 241 infectious aerosol control standards. These new standards are set to be recognised in the upcoming GM version 7 for enhanced IAQ adoption.

This presentation examines GM's transformative journey towards greater health and wellbeing, tracing key milestones including Indoor Environmental Quality evolution and research comparing GM and non-GM certified buildings' performance and occupant satisfaction.

Moving forward, more research is needed to balance energy efficiency with IAQ in Singapore's tropical context. While Alternative Cooling Technology (ACT) research has addressed energy savings and thermal comfort, limited knowledge exists on ACTs' impact on IAQ, presenting opportunities for international collaboration.

Biography

Mr Ang Kian Seng heads the Environmental Sustainability Group in the Building and Construction Authority of Singapore (BCA).

His portfolio includes policies on green buildings and FM transformation, with the BCA Green Mark Scheme as a main lever. The Green Mark scheme certifies buildings on their level of environmental friendliness and energy efficiency. He plays an instrumental role in the formulation and implementation of BCA's Green Buildings Masterplans.

He is the current Member of the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC). He also sits on the board of directors of the Singapore International Facility Management Association (SIFMA), which is positioning itself to champion the FM industry transformation.

Keynote Session

From science to policy: how to shape the future of indoor air

To control a complex system, understanding it is fundamental. In recent decades, the scientific understanding of every aspect of the building-person-environment system has expanded enormously thanks to the interdisciplinary efforts of experts from all scientific, engineering, public health, and related practice disciplines.

However, understanding alone is not enough to guarantee the optimal functioning of a complex system. It is necessary to monitor its performance and use this information to continuously adjust it to changing external and internal conditions, human needs, and energy demands.

With the advent of generative AI in the design and operation of buildings, it is now possible to consider a wide range of design and usage options, taking into account climate projections, regulatory requirements, material characteristics, and local conditions.

Ultimately, however, unless this knowledge is accepted and its use is protected by building design and performance regulations, society will benefit little from it. The future of indoor air quality lies in the societal recognition that it is a necessity and in the political will to act accordingly.

Biography

Distinguished Professor Lidia Morawska is a leading expert in air quality and its impact on human health and the environment, with a particular focus on the science of airborne particulate matter. She is Distinguished Professor at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, Australia, and Director of the International Laboratory for Air Quality and Health at QUT, a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for research and training in air quality and health. She also serves as Centre Director for the ARC Training Centre for Advanced Building Systems Against Airborne Infection Transmission (THRIVE) hosted at QUT.

Professor Morawska holds additional positions as Vice-Chancellor Fellow at the Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE), University of Surrey, UK, and Adjunct Professor at the Institute for Environmental and Climate Research (ECI), Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.

A physicist by training, she received her doctorate from Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland. She has authored over 1,100 journal papers, book chapters, and refereed conference papers. At the executive level, she has contributed to numerous national and international professional bodies and currently acts as an advisor to the WHO. She is a Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, and a Fellow of the Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering.

Professor Morawska has received numerous awards, including inclusion in the 2021 TIME100 list of the world's most influential people and the L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Award, recognised "for her excellent research in air pollution and its impact on human health and the environment, with a focus on atmospheric particulate matter, and for translating fundamental science into real-world policy and practice to provide clean air for all.

Keynote Session

Air Quality and Public Health Outcomes in the Global South

Air pollution remains the single largest environmental risk to human health globally, on par with tobacco use and unhealthy diets. In the Global South, the burden is especially severe: 2.1 billion people still cook with solid fuels, indoor PM_2.5 levels often exceed the 2021 World Health Organization Air Quality Guidelines by 40- to 80-fold, and many countries - particularly in Africa - lack enforceable national standards for PM_2.5.

This situation is further exacerbated by widespread poor ventilation. In healthcare facilities, inadequate ventilation and overcrowded wards significantly increase the risk of healthcare-associated infections and contribute to the rise of antimicrobial resistance. At the same time, the rapid verticalisation of hospitals, offices, and residential buildings - often with limited or no natural ventilation - further degrades indoor environmental quality. Pollutants and airborne pathogens become trapped within these spaces, amplifying both communicable and non-communicable disease burdens across the lifespan.

This keynote traces how the physics of airborne harm has long been understood - from the early observations of Hippocrates and the ventilation reforms championed by Florence Nightingale, to modern quantitative frameworks such as the Wells–Riley equation. Yet despite this longstanding knowledge, institutional responses have continued to lag.

Drawing on guidance from the World Health Organization and modelling from the World Bank, the keynote calls for stronger convergence between the public health, infection prevention, and indoor air quality communities. It concludes with practical innovation provocations aimed at accelerating solutions for the Global South.

Biography

Dr. Ranga Reddy Burri is President of the Infection Control Academy of India (IFCAI) and an Honorary Professor at the University of Hyderabad. A leading voice in infection prevention, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) containment, and health system resilience, he has spearheaded multiple initiatives to advance public health capacity in the Global South.

Dr. Burri has led regional and international collaborations through platforms such as G-SPARC, strengthening education, training, and policy frameworks for infection prevention and control (IPC) and AMR across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. His current work focuses on integrating One Health perspectives into AMR containment and patient safety strategies.

A recognised expert and advocate for innovation-driven public health, he brings over three decades of experience across academia, civil society, and leadership, bridging science, systems, industry, and policy. His keynote reflects his commitment to elevating indoor air quality as a cornerstone of public health equity in the Global South.

Keynote Session

A Look at the Trajectory of Indoor Air Science and Its Contributions to Humanity

Indoor environments sit at the interface between humanity and nature. Over centuries, indoor air science has evolved from addressing basic shelter and storage needs to tackling the existential challenges of climate change and health equity today. Building on the insights of early pioneers, the global research community has transformed this understanding into the standards that define modern buildings.

Yet, every advance has also created new challenges. Sealing buildings for energy efficiency can trap pollutants, while surging air-conditioning demand drives a vicious climate feedback loop. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed how indoor air quality shapes health, productivity, and economies - already costing billions each year. Short-term thinking continues as new materials enter markets without adequate emission and health testing.

Breathing clean indoor air is a fundamental human right, yet deep socioeconomic disparities have created a significant IAQ divide, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations. The Global South - home to more than 80% of humanity and most future growth - faces the greatest burden but also holds a historic opportunity to lead the necessary transformation.

Overcoming these challenges will require systems thinking, a new human - material symbiosis, and truly scalable solutions. Indoor air science empowers us to harness technology to create a more sustainable, resilient, and equitable future for our built environments.

Biography

Professor Yuguo Li is Chair Professor of Building Environment at The University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on city climate, infection transmission, and sustainability engineering. His team investigates ventilation requirements for mitigating SARS-CoV-2 transmission and explores resilient city design technologies. Their work, both prior to and during the pandemic, has helped redefine the transmission mechanisms of respiratory infections.

Professor Li serves as a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Infection Prevention and Control Guidance Development Group (IPC GDG) and is the Founding Editor-in-Chief of Indoor Environments, the official journal of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ).

He is a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences, where he currently serves as Honorary Secretary. He has received numerous honours, including the Pettenkofer Award (ISIAQ), the Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Prize (China), the Medal of Honour from the HKSAR Government, and an honorary doctorate from Aalborg University.