Healthy Buildings 2023 Asia and Pacific Rim International Conference was successfully held at Tianjin from July 17 to 19, 2023. This conference was jointly organized by Tianjin University and Dalian University of Technology, along with co-organizers of the University of Colorado, Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and the National Residential and Living Environment Engineering Technology Research Center.
This conference serves as the flagship event of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ) and is held biennially in the Asia-Pacific region. The conference attracted 410 distinguished experts, scholars, industry representatives, and young students from 16 countries or regions, fostering fruitful exchanges and discussions.
Group photo of the conference participants
Prof. Jinlong Gong, Vice President of Tianjin University, and Prof. Anhui Lu, Associate Vice President of Dalian University of Technology, delivered welcome speeches on behalf of their respective institutions at the opening ceremony. Prof. Gong emphasized importance of exploring the carbon-based energy alternatives, carbon reduction in construction, and new approaches to utilize renewable energy in the field of healthy buildings. He expected that this conference would promote interdisciplinary communication and collaboration and build a healthier and more sustainable future. Prof. Anhui Lu hoped that this grand event would provide a more open international platform for scholars from China and abroad, facilitating the high-quality development of healthy building related industry. Prof. Qingyan (Yan) Chen, Head of the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Associate Prof. Ying Xu, President of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ) from Tsinghua University, also delivered speeches at the opening ceremony. The conference opening ceremony was chaired by Prof. Tengfei (Tim) Zhang, School of Environmental Science and Engineering of Tianjin University. Sumei Liu, Associate Prof., Mengqiang Lv, Assistant Research Fellow, both from the School of Environmental Science and Engineering of Tianjin University; Jihong Wang, Associate Prof. from Dalian University of Technology; and Dr. Feng Wang from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University serve as conference secretaries.
Welcome speech by Prof. Jinlong Gong
Welcome speech by Prof. Anhui Lu
Welcome speech by Prof. Qingyan (Yan) Chen Welcome speech from Prof. Ying Xu
Opening ceremony chaired by Prof. Tengfei (Tim) Zhang, Conference President
The conference, themed "Resilient Healthy Buildings and the Low-carbon Solutions," covered a range of cutting-edge international topics, including indoor health resilience, environmental pollutant exposure, source control and exposure mitigation, low-carbon construction and intelligent operation of healthy buildings, and healthy building management, etc. Eight outstanding scientists were invited to deliver plenary speeches at the conference, including Lidia Morawska, Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science and Professor from Queensland University of Technology; William W. Nazaroff, former editor-in-chief of Indoor Air, a leading journal in the field of indoor environment, and Distinguished Professor Emeritus from University of California, Berkeley; Charles J. Weschler, Professor from the State University of New Jersey, Rutgers; Pawel Wargock, Professor from the Technical University of Denmark; Zhiqiang (John) Zhai, Professor from the University of Colorado at Boulder; Yuguo Li, Professor from the University of Hong Kong; as well as Professor Yingxin Zhu and Professor Yinping Zhang, both from Tsinghua University.
Prof. Charles J. Weschler delivered the plenary speech
Prof. Lidia Morawska delivered the plenary speech
Presenting plenary speech certificate
In addition to the plenary speeches, the conference also organized 188 oral presentations, 6 workshops, and two poster exhibitions with 177 posters. The conference also organized the healthy building design competition, attracting 15 teams from around the world to participate. Furthermore, two technical tour routes were arranged, including visits to the unique fully functional MD-82 aircraft test platform of Tianjin University and the Built Environment Lab of Tianjin University.
Oral presentation session Poster exhibition
Partial conference attendees visited the fully functional MD-82 aircraft test platform
After a scientific and rigorous evaluation, the conference selected 5 Best Paper Awards, 4 Best Poster Awards, 5 Best Design Awards, and 4 Student Conference Sponsorship Awards. These awardees come from nine universities including Kyushu University in Japan, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, National University of Singapore, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Tsinghua University, etc.
The conference closing ceremony was held on July 19 afternoon. Dr. Sumei Liu, associate professor from the School of Environmental Science and Engineering of Tianjin University sumarized the conference. Prof. Yinping Zhang, President of the ISIAQ Academy, former President Prof. Pawel Wargocki, and Dr. Ying Xu, the ISIAQ President, expressed high remarks of the conference organization. This conference showcased Tianjin University in the leading role of the healthy building field, laying a solid foundation for serving the national "Healthy China" strategy and the national "Dual Carbon Goal".
By School of Environmental Science and Engineering
Editor: Sun Xiaofang
