While household mould growth has been increasingly highlighted in response to its adverse health outcomes and building management burden, studies are reviewed respectively from perspective of epidemiological survey, or building technology. This paper thus presents a literature review to address the building environment and mould exposure in homes, including the mould growth and exposure characteristics, interaction with building features, design requirements from current standards.

Cost savings from efficiency gains are at the core of the green building business case. Significantly lower energy bills are said to be a major factor in the green rent premium observed in earlier studies. Our study tests this relationship by inferring energy costs from operating expenses for a large dataset of U.S. office buildings and relating them to rental rates. We find that eco-certification is associated with a higher than anticipated total energy expenditure, which is the opposite of its expected effect.

A guide with these contents

• Sustainable and accessible ways to keep cool
• Key messages
• How does heat affect the body?
• Doesn’t air conditioning solve the problem?
• How can electric fans help?
• When shouldn’t electric fans be used?
• What if it’s too hot to use a fan or there is no power?
• How can buildings help keep people cool without the need for air conditioning?
• What should governments, employers, services and communities do to promote
• ‘fan-first’ cooling?
• Sources