Bob Krell
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www.healthyindoors.com Vol. 6 No. 6, Oct/Nov 2018
H
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6 | EDITORIAL— October/November 2018
W
e tend to think of our out-
door environments and
indoor environments
as being detached and distinctly
different ecosystems. This sort of
makes sense, as we historically
have created indoor spaces to
separate and protect us from the
conditions outside. We design
structures for safety, comfort, and
our well-being. It generally works,
so long as the outdoor environ-
ment behaves as expected.
The past several years has
seen a marked increase in both
the occurrence and severity of
extreme weather events like
hurricanes, as well as wildfires,
to name some obvious exam-
ples. Both appear to be linked
to our changing climate, which
according to many of those in
the world's scientific commu-
nity, is being accelerated by
man-made activities.
These unfavorable manifes-
tations in the outdoor environ-
ment are adversely affecting
the indoor environments for an
increasing number of people
globally. Aside from the im-
mediate structural harm and
loss of life from a catastrophic
storm, the resulting large-scale
water damage and subsequent
indoor microbial contamination
can make indoor environments
uninhabitable. We are seeing
this scenario played out repeat-
edly, with alarming frequency.
California is currently facing
its most deadly wildfire ever,
with the casualty toll rising
each day. The airborne con-
tamination with particulates from
the smoke is polluting the out-
side air, and in turn, seriously de-
grading the indoor environments
for vast geographic areas.
Our buildings were designed
to function under normal outdoor
conditions. We are now living
in abnormal times. Certainly, we
need to take preemptive mea-
sures to curb the changing cli-
mate—as best we can. But we
also must revise our structural
and system designs towards
resiliency, to more effectively
deal with a harsher outdoor
world. Failure to change our
current path will be disastrous.
We can, of course, take the
necessary steps to mitigate the
situation, if we as a global com-
munity choose to do so. We
already have much of the tech-
nology available to begin that
process and could increase our
capabilities exponentially if the
resources are allocated. Wait
and see, or business as usual,
are no longer options.
Bob Krell
Founder & Publisher
The Climate Indoors
