Professor Paweł Wargocki is an Ordinary Professor at the Technical University of Denmark. He has more than 25 years of experience in research on indoor environmental conditions and their effects on people. He is best known for his groundbreaking work showing that degraded indoor environmental quality affects office work and academic performance. His recent work includes research on human emissions, sleep quality in relation to indoor environmental conditions, the impact of green buildings on the well-being of their occupants, and gas-phase air purification and air quality in aircraft. He has worked with leading research institutions, universities and industry partners around the world, including the National University of Singapore, Jiaotong University in Shanghai, Syracuse Center of Excellence, United Technologies, Velux and Google. He was president and long-time board member of the International Society for Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ), vice chairman of the 2008 Indoor Air Conference and chairman of ASHRAE committees. He has served as president of the Academy of Indoor Air Science. He has received many awards for his scientific work, including the 2022 Installation Leader Award.
How did your scientific career begin?
It is a very interesting story, because it’s beginning is quite accidental. In 1989, the first opportunities for foreign exchange appeared due to the changes in the political scene in Poland. I really wanted to go to England. Fate made me get a scholarship to Denmark at TU Denmark. There, for the first time, I became more involved in a scientific project, which strongly awakened in me a passion for exploring and solving problems. That’s how my adventure in science began, and that’s when I fell in love with Denmark.
I never thought I would become a scientist, but I fell in love with the opportunity to study something undiscovered, to constantly challenge the status quo and seek for answers.
What was that first project about?
At the time, we were studying a very interesting relationship of how the change in air quality is perceived by people, focusing mainly on odour sensations. This was my first closer exposure to the subject of indoor climate. I really enjoyed the project and the domain, which, as it turned out later, would stay with me for a long time. Indoor climate is in other words the environment in which we live in buildings, cars or other closed environments. Together with my team, we are studying people’s interactions with the indoor climate, analysing the effects on our well-being, health, work performance, academic performance and learning, and sleep quality, among others.
What research questions are you currently working on?
The main objective of my scientific work is to understand how the indoor climate affects humans, to define and measure metrics, and then propose technological systems to improve environmental conditions indoors.
Climate change is also a very important factor, directly affecting temperature not only outdoors but also in buildings, the occurrence of extremal weather events, and the state of the external environment. We must understand that what is happening outside is directly affecting the indoor environmental quality. Often a window or a building wall creates some barrier, but climate change makes our buildings less resilient and creates many new challenges for the design of indoor spaces as well. These challenges include overheating, transport of pollutants from wildfires and thus ventilation, indoor air quality, and access to daylight.
“What I like very much to do is to start a research direction and get other groups interested in working. I love sharing ideas and inspiring others. I know that I am not able to implement these ideas myself, but I am able to get other groups interested. “
What’s interesting is that we also use advanced technologies in our work, for example, digital twins of buildings, which allow us to understand and simulate the physiological sensations of people living in different conditions. We conduct a similar study using so-called living labs, where we conduct research for many companies, including, for example, Boeing with whom we conduct research using our mock-up aircraft cabin.
Why do you think this area is so important for society?
What emphasises the importance and the direct impact of the indoor environment on our health is the amount of time we spend indoors. We are talking here not only about the workplace, but also automobiles, public transportation, or also the bedroom where we sleep. Some people, for example, say that we inhale a swimming pool of air indoors every day. An equally important aspect is the low public awareness of this matter. Residents of cities with high air pollution are increasingly paying attention to it. But do we do the same indoors, in the buildings? Do we do the same when, for example, we do fitness in the gym? In such a room, the level of ventilation, as well as the amount of germs exchanged with other exercisers, can make a seemingly “healthy activity” have a worse effect on our health due to exposure to harmful compounds or bacteria as we breathe intensively.
What can we do to raise awareness and control the indoor climate in the rooms we spend time in?
We are currently working on building devices and defining rating schemes to measure what conditions are in a room and in a building, whether they may pose a risk to people or whether they indicate that some actions to improve indoor environments are required. Our research also takes into account our ability to adapt to changing conditions. The effects of the projects we conduct can directly improve every day for each of us by improving health, well-being, and work and sleep but also advance the science and understanding of the problems..
What is the biggest challenge for science and your field at the moment?
Science is a tool that is prerequisite for our development as human beings. Yet less and less young people are attracted to science. Fewer and fewer students are opting for second degrees and even less are eager to pursue a PhD. This trend is only noticeable in Denmark, as well as in Poland and other foreign universities. I am aware of what is attractive to students in alternative career paths, and the problem of insufficient funding. However, I myself am proof that it is possible to be fulfilled in science, and what I do still does not cease to excite me.
What are the benefits of working in an international scientific community?
First of all, huge inspiration. It is also an opportunity to meet new, genuinely interesting people, both while working on projects, as well as going to international conferences in many different parts of the world. This scientific exposure to the international environment is possible, both for employees of research centres abroad and those in Poland. I myself have had the pleasure of coming to give guest lectures at universities in Poland on many occasions, I collaborate with NCBR, and I keep up to date with the achievements and activities of projects from Warsaw University of Technology, my Alma Mater. I think that what is most beautiful about my work is constant opportunities for development and constantly posing new challenges and research questions that prevent stagnation and boredom.
What do you appreciate most about the Danish approach to science?
A rather unique aspect of science in Scandinavian countries is the high percentage of funding that comes from sources other than public. In Denmark, these comprise foundations from many major private companies that invest among others in the scientific projects. The situation is similar in Finland. With the funding received from private foundations, you are offered the opportunity to carry out your research locally or to go on a scientific project, a conference. I have to admit that I very much appreciate how Scandinavian countries promote supporting and investing in science.
What would you like to say to young scientists or students considering this career path?
I wish them to have the courage to follow their passion for discovering. Working in science allows you to constantly explore the unknown, solve problems, and gives you a very strong boost to keep moving forward; and also you meet new people, learn from them and become a better human. It is trivial but we can not say it otherwise. For me, it is the strongest stimulus that makes me avoid monotonous work and gives me great satisfaction with the work I do. With my work I can help others. And this is probably the most important stimulus.
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