Time to act to improve the air we share indoors

The report, The Science of Indoor Air and Pathways to Improve Indoor Air Quality in Australia, provides a primer on the scientific evidence base and explores policy pathways to deliver healthier indoor air for everyone.

It identifies a range of policy mechanisms that could improve IAQ in Australia:

• Elevating IAQ as a national health and infrastructure priority
• Establishing a multidisciplinary taskforce to provide expert advice on IAQ to multiple government departments
• Developing a national reporting standard for workplace IAQ
• Adopting the World Health Organization’s Global air quality guidelines.

Steps to be taken

The report recommends a three-phase approach to achieve clean indoor air in workplaces. This would begin with a requirement to monitor without a reporting standard, followed by a mandatory workplace reporting standard, and finally an IAQ standard for all public buildings.

In terms of enforceable IAQ requirements, the report points to three key areas in which this could be addressed: building standards, workplace health and safety regulation and standards, and accessibility standards.

The report also highlights public education as a central piece of the puzzle to ensure that measures are effectively adopted by building owners, operators, and occupants. According to the report, policy measures should aim to address any existing inequities, especially in schools, aged care, and social housing. Maintenance will also be vital, including ensuring Australia has sufficient skilled labour for this industry.

Coming together at Parliament

The report was officially launched by the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care Rebecca White MP at the Safer Air Project’s Making the invisible visible conference at Parliament House in Canberra. Other speakers at the event included Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Clean Air Quality group Senator Michelle Ananda-Rajah, Australian Chief Medical Officer Professor Michael Kidd, patient organisations, clinicians, scientists, and industry leaders.

“To achieve clean indoor air, we must work together across government, industry and academia to translate what we know into policy and practice,” says President of the Australian Academy of Science, Professor Chennupati Jagadish AC.

Academy Fellow, world-leading expert on indoor air and winner of the 2025 Prime Minister’s Prize for Science, Distinguished Professor Lidia Morawska FAA FTSE, is the lead expert for the Academy’s new report.

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