ISIAQ Academy Awards 2014

Abstract

Editorial for Indoor Air (Vol. 24, Issue 5, October 2014) WW Nazaroff et al. ISIAQ Academy Awards 2014 The 13 th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate (Indoor Air 2014) was convened in Hong Kong during the week of 7-12 July 2014. Professor Yuguo Li served as the Conference President. One of many highlights during the conference was the presentation of awards from the ISIAQ Academy of Fellows, which occurred during the opening plenary session. These awards celebrate high achievements in the indoor air sciences. As described in an earlier editorial (Nazaroff, 2012a), the ISIAQ Academy of Fellows has its origins in the creation of the International Academy of Indoor Air Sciences in 1991. In 2005, that organization was reconstituted as a part of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ). The ISIAQ Academy of Fellows is an international, multidisciplinary, scientific, honorific organization established to promote scholarship in the indoor environment and building sciences. The awards program, which is featured at all Indoor Air conferences, is a core activity of the Academy. Best Paper Awards The best-papers jury reviewed 143 papers that were published in Indoor Air during the years 2011-2013. Papers were judged for originality, scientific and technical content, and importance. In addition to these criteria, writing style was taken into consideration. The three winning papers each describe the results of field studies. It is noteworthy that two of these papers address what the jury considers to be the most important indoor air quality problem: exposures and health risks associated with indoor biomass cooking. In chronological order, these are the winning papers: • Haverinen-Shaughnessy, U., Moschandreas, D.J. and Shaughnessy, R.J. (2011) Association between substandard classroom ventilation rates and students’ academic achievement, Indoor Air 21, 121-131. This study used a cost-effective design to explore the relationship between classroom ventilation (estimated from CO 2 measurement in one classroom per school) and fifth-grade students passing mandatory standardized tests as a measure of student academic performance. The results are policy relevant, suggesting that increasing the ventilation rates in the many underventilated classrooms toward the recommended guideline values could translate into improved academic achievement of the students. The paper received high scores for originality and importance. • Dutta, A., Mukherjee, B., Das, D., Banerjee, A. and Ray, M.R. (2011) Hypertension with elevated levels of oxidized low-density lipoprotein and anticardiolipin antibody in the circulation of premenopausal Indian women chronically exposed to biomass smoke during cooking, Indoor Air 21, 165-176. In this well-designed study it is shown that poor women in rural India have a high risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. The methods employed are state-of-the-art, including numerous objective measures or signs of health. The paper leaves the reader with a solid impression of excellent science and craftsmanship. The paper scored high in all of the three main criteria. • Hawley, B. and Volckens, J. (2013) Proinflammatory effects of cookstove emissions on human bronchial epithelial cells, Indoor Air 23, 4-13. Another well designed study on effects of biomass cookstoves. The study uses human bronchial epithelial cells to assess pro- inflammatory effects with exposure to either traditional or improved (cleaner burning) cookstove emissions. The results support other evidence indicating that efficient cookstoves can reduce the health burden associated with exposure to household pollution from combustion of solid biomass fuels. The study uses multiple assays to assess effects; the work