About INGENIOUS

Understanding the sources, transformations and fates of indoor air pollutants

Why do we need to understand indoor air pollution?

In the UK most of us spend about 90% of our time indoors, but almost all efforts to reduce air pollution focus on the outdoors. Unfortunately, the air inside our homes, schools and workplaces can also be polluted. Indoor air pollution comes in many forms, from gases, like carbon monoxide, to particulate matter such as dust and soot. Breathing in these particles and gases is bad for our health and poor indoor air quality has been linked to lung diseases including asthma and cancer.

Who we are

A team of scientists from four universities, led by the University of York, are working together with the internationally recognised Born In Bradford (BiB) study. The team includes specialists in environmental, social, medical, engineering, economic, and health issues, from the University of York (including the York centre of the Stockholm Environment Institute), University of Manchester, University of Cambridge and University of Sheffield

Where we are working

The project will focus on homes in the city of Bradford, which, like many other parts of the UK, is affected by poor air quality. Bradford has a multi-ethnic population and high levels of deprivation, with some of the highest childhood illness rates in the UK.

We are fortunate to work with the Born In Bradford (BiB) study – a long-term health research study tracking the lives of over 30,000 Bradfordians to find out what keeps families healthy and happy.

What we are doing

The INGENIOUS project will quantify and identify:

Our funding

The  INGENIOUS  project is funded through a £2.9 million grant from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The project will run 2021 - 2025.