Building for Safety and Resilience: Indoor Air Quality and Energy Solutions Under One Roof 
Presented by Dr. Parichehr Salimifard, Assistant Professor of Architectural Engineering and Culbertson Faculty Scholar

When wildfire smoke makes outdoor air hazardous, we take shelter indoors — but buildings are not completely sealed. People spend about 90% of their time indoors, and how we ventilate, filter, and operate buildings can determine whether “indoors” is truly safer – during smoke events, respiratory virus seasons, and everyday life.  

In this lecture, Parichehr Salimifard, Director of the Sustainable, Healthy, and Resilient Buildings (SHRB) Lab, will share how building science and aerosol research can help protect occupants in schools and childcare centers in southern Oregon. She will highlight community-engaged projects that use portable air cleaners, conduct long-term indoor-outdoor monitoring, and develop smoke response plans – showing how ventilation and room-level “microenvironments” can significantly influence smoke intrusion. She will also discuss why CO₂ is not a reliable proxy for smoke particles in buildings and how on-site calibration can improve the accuracy and reliability of low-cost sensor data for decision-making. The talk will also feature SHRB Lab’s full-size filtration test rig, which enables filter testing according to international standards and provides practical guidance for engineers and building operators.  

Ultimately, this lecture bridges the connection between indoor air quality, energy efficiency, and sustainability solutions. Salimifard will introduce tools that quantify the climate and public health impacts of building energy decisions (CoBE Projection), including projections that show health and climate co-benefits can add approximately $0.02–$0.81 for every $1 of electricity savings by 2050, depending on location. She will also share new findings on “healthy electrification,” including how the emissions benefits of heat pumps depend on a building's location and the cleanliness of the local grid.