Sotirios Papathanasiou

For over a decade, Sotirios Papathanasiou has been a driving force in the air quality industry. His passion lies in making clean air accessible to all, and this is reflected in his work developing air quality monitors for low- and middle-income markets.

Sotirios has collaborated with academics on research papers, delving deep into sensor evaluation and indoor/outdoor air quality assessment.

Driven by a desire to empower the public, Sotirios established seetheair.org , a blog dedicated to educating people about the importance of clean air. He has even translated this knowledge into engaging books for both children and adults.

Sotirios actively contributes his expertise as an advisory board member for esteemed organizations like the WELL Building Institute and The Safer Project Air. Recognizing the lack of widely adopted indoor air quality standards, he embarked on a groundbreaking project: Global Open Air Quality Standards (GO AQS) goaqs.org . This open initiative aims to bridge the gap between academia and the IAQ industry, fostering collaboration to establish clear and accessible indoor air quality guidelines for everyone.

Professor John Wenger

John Wenger is Professor of Physical Chemistry at University College Cork (UCC) and founding director of the Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry. He has 30 years research experience in atmospheric chemistry and air pollution, initiating numerous national and international collaborations and producing more than 130 journal publications and reports.

Prof. Wenger’s research has been used to inform Irish government policies on air pollution control, especially in relation to the solid fuels regulations and the national Clean Air Strategy. He has served on the EPA Advisory Committee, as well as expert advisory groups for both government and non-governmental organisations.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Prof. Wenger has become a strong advocate for greater recognition of the important role that aerosols play in the transmission of communicable diseases.

In early 2021, he was appointed Chair of the Expert Group on Ventilation and further contributed to the national response to the pandemic as member of the COVID-19 Advisory Group, led by the Department of Health.

Prof Wenger is a strong advocate for clean air and is regularly involved in public engagement activities to raise awareness of the health risks of air pollution and practical ways to reduce emissions and human exposure.