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In hermetically sealed buildings, less fresh air gets in. [...] Eventually, this polluted indoor air – which is making more than a third of the planet sick – is expelled into the surrounding environment. This raises the question of how buildings pollute the air around them, what pollutants they produce, and whether this expelled air is sufficiently diluted once outdoors. — The Conversation
As the article mentions, the World Health Organization had previously pointed to a "lack of monitoring of air pollution levels, sources and consequences on public health" as a present danger for cities. To fix it, authors César Martín-Gómez and Arturo H. Ariño of the Universidad de Navarra... View full entry
Ayers Saint Gross has shared renderings of its new design in Charlotte, NC. Phase 1, which is set to open in 2025, includes two new buildings totaling 685,000 square feet, two parking garages with 1,100 parking spaces, and a central plaza. The project is part of The Pearl; a planned innovation... View full entry
It’s a crisis a decade in the making and, without dramatic fixes, experts say the city could be approaching “Day Zero” — when a city simply runs out of water — around June. That would leave up to 20 million people in and around the capital facing a summer without running water. June also happens to be the month when Mexico will choose its next president. — News Lines Magazine
'Day Zero' (or the day water taps run dry) could be looming for June in the Mexican capital and home of over 9 million people just within the city proper. Its known air quality issues have improved under Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum’s green policy agenda, helping her meet some claims produced by... View full entry
For the Harvard professor, founder of the university's Healthy Buildings Program, our building design and public health officials have ignored indoor air systems for too long – that is, until the COVID pandemic hit. [...]
"If you look at the way we design and operate buildings –and I mean offices, schools, local coffee shop[s] – we haven't designed for health," Allen said. "We have bare minimum standards."
— CBS News
Professor Joe Allen, who also does consultation work for developers, recently advised on the Amazon ‘HQ2’ project in Virginia from NBBJ. He and his colleagues at Harvard’s Healthy Buildings Program center their work around six research areas (Homes, Schools, Business, Materials... View full entry
A new scientific study has shown the positive correlations between public health and tree planting in urban areas. In a report published recently by The Lancet medical science journal, a team of European researchers shared data on mortality rates in 93 cities in the summer of 2015 that... View full entry
The Tate Modern will turn into a mass walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre this Friday night, offering first and second Pfizer jabs to anyone over 18.
The iconic venue will be hosting the pop-up vaccine site in its Turbine Hall, offering Londoners exclusive access to galleries for the night and a unique setting to get protected against Covid.
— City A.M.
Vaccination rates in London have fallen recently. All four Tate galleries have been fully reopened since May following a 14-month partial closure that reduced overall visitorship by 80%. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced the reopening of the country on July 19th despite pushback from some... View full entry
More than 50 countries are racing to vaccinate their populations to fend off the rising death toll of a third wave of infections. To supplement the existing network of hospitals, medical clinics, pharmacies and other healthcare facilities, many are establishing mass vaccination sites capable of processing crowds — often sports arenas, convention centers and stadiums, but also parking lots and deserted shopping malls. — Bloomberg CityLab
Bloomberg CityLab takes a look at how large sports, cultural, and civic facilities are being converted into mass vaccination sites in cities around the world. View full entry
This post is brought to you by Combo Competitions Emotions, Architecture, Opioids (deadline extended to September 6) is an ideas competition seeking to explore the emotional impact of architecture, its effect on how people feel and behave - and how it can be of use in the struggle against... View full entry
The new Tupelo shelters are designed to be easily and strategically combined with additional rigid-walled Tupelo shelters as well as soft tent shelters. [...] the new shelter’s dynamic design can adapt to fit needs in healthcare for treatment and testing, and perhaps in the evolving classroom setting as well. The shelter can be “flat-packed,” meaning the shelter walls can be stacked on top of each other for high-volume, rapid transportation to affected areas. — Composites World
Rhode Island-based Core Composites, a leading company that has built and designed advanced composite-based, rigid-wall shelters for the U.S. military, is working to quickly develop an easily deployable shelter that can be used for COVID-19 testing and treatment, and to aid over-capacity hospitals. View full entry
Some members have signed a petition on the worker advocacy platform Coworker.org calling on WeWork to close its 848 locations worldwide. There are more than 300 locations in the United States.
Jill Raney, a Washington-based WeWork member who launched the petition, says the company’s decision to remain open during a public health crisis is “unconscionable.” They said it effectively forces businesses with small margins to choose between wasting money or putting themselves at risk.
— The Washington Post
As the number of coronavirus cases in the U.S. increases rapidly, WeWork has remained open even after some members have tested positive for the virus in at least seven of their New York locations as well as in LA and Chicago, according to The Washington Post. Other members have signed an online... View full entry
According to a statement released by SXSW today, the City of Austin has canceled the March dates for SXSW and SXSW EDU. Initially scheduled to occur from March 13 to March 22, this is the first time in 34 years that the conference has been called off. "We are devastated to share this news with... View full entry
With some overseas cities shut down and companies in the U.S. urging those returning from high-risk areas to stay away from the office, workers world-wide are hunkering down for what might be a new normal [...]
powered by technology like videoconference services and workplace-collaboration software, many members of the new remote workforce say they are finally able to get some work done without constant interruptions from open-office setups or days packed with in-person meetings.
— The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal takes a look at the sudden rise in remote working arrangements as the world economy grapples with the spreading coronavirus threat. The report touches on the situation faced by Texas-based designers Jing Johnson of Prism Renderings and her husband Warren Johnson of... View full entry
The samples he collects will help scientists better understand how the massive increase in seasonal wildfires burning through residential areas might be affecting our health. Where smoke once contained the remnants of only biomass (trees and other organic matter), fires are now burning up homes—structures that contain thousands of synthetic chemicals, paints, plastics, and metals that smolder and combust into tiny particles. — National Geographic
Air pollution worsened in the United States in 2017 and 2018, new data shows, a reversal after years of sustained improvement with significant implications for public health.
In 2018 alone, eroding air quality was linked to nearly 10,000 additional deaths in the U.S. relative to the 2016 benchmark, the year in which small-particle pollution reached a two-decade low, according to researchers at Carnegie Mellon University.
— The Washington Post
The Washington Post reports that "concentrations of the pollutant have risen about 5.5 percent since 2016," and points out several contributing factors that the Carnegie Mellon study identified: increased natural gas use and vehicle traffic, risen severity and frequency of wildfires, and the... View full entry
For 20 years, the American Lung Association has gathered and analyzed data from official air quality monitors creating its annual "State of the Air" report. It's been reported by the association that more than four in ten people currently live in areas where pollution levels are too dangerous to... View full entry
