Climate Change and Outdoor-Indoor Air Pollution in Urban Environments

Dear Colleagues,

In the past couple of centuries, the development of human societies and the accompanying growth in the consumption of resources (e.g., energy, water, and food), has caused such levels of stress to the global sum of ecosystems that the term ‘Anthropocene’ has been proposed as a more apt description of the current geological epoch. Among current problems faced by humanity today, the effects of climate change are fast becoming the familiar horsemen of a planetary apocalypse, as so vividly made clear to world leaders at the recent COP26 summit.

Climate change adversely affects outdoor air quality. Studies have shown that air pollution is the number one environmental cause of death in the EU, responsible for more than 400,000 premature deaths per year, because, as is well understood, exposure to particulate matter (PM) can cause or aggravate cardiovascular and lung diseases, heart attacks and arrhythmias, affect the central nervous system and the reproductive system, and cause cancer. Climate change also worsens existing indoor air, an issue particularly important in the northern hemisphere, where most people spend about 90% of their time indoors. Changes in the climate can affect the air we breathe indoors in many ways. For example, such changes can worsen the quality of air outdoors, which infiltrates indoor environments. Rising CO₂ levels and warmer temperatures can increase outdoor airborne allergens which can then infiltrate indoor spaces. Additionally, more frequent and longer outdoor heat waves can result in higher indoor temperatures. Climate change can also increase dampness and humidity and lead to increases in mold, dust mites, bacteria, and other biological contaminants indoors. Extreme weather events can also create conditions that support increases in and the spread of pests and infectious agents that can make their way indoors.

This Special Issue aims to attract manuscripts concerned with indoor and outdoor air pollution studies, manuscripts that deal with the challenges faced by planners/decision makers, but also manuscripts that identify opportunities for improvement. As climate change is recognized as imposing impacts on the environment, manuscripts dealing with how it affects indoor air quality and the health of occupants are also welcome. Manuscripts reporting on the development of IoT-based indoor air quality monitoring platforms and cloud computing technology to monitor indoor air quality are particularly welcome.

Dr. Vasilis Evagelopoulos
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.