Learning to ventilate
How, what and why
Providing fresh air is as important as filtering drinking water. It directly affects our general health, the spread of prevalent viruses AND brain activity. For these reasons, it is never too early to learn the how, what and why of ventilation.
A teaching pack is available for primary school children so that they become aware of the power of fresh air and understand how to ventilate. It is an interactive package with a test, a game and tools for a daily routine. Schools can request the teaching pack free of charge via this link. More than 1,000 packages have now been downloaded.
The numbers
Since children and young people spend most of their day in school, we need to pay attention to air quality in classrooms. Research commissioned by the Ministry of Education shows that in more than a quarter of schools ventilation leaves something to be desired*. At least half a million pupils and teaching staff suffer daily as a result of this.
Over 600 schools were given a budget by the ministry in 2021 to improve their indoor climate. The EUR 365 million spent on this is completely overshadowed by the EUR 1.6 billion** still needed to equip all the schools in the Netherlands with proper ventilation. Schools are basically responsible for this themselves.
CO2 meters
A first step towards a healthy indoor climate is monitoring the current CO2 values in a room. Since February 2022, CO2 meters have been mandatory in all classrooms in primary and secondary schools in the Netherlands. A CO2 meter measures the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, expressed in PPM (parts per million). Based on the CO2 values in a room, action can be taken. A value of 800 or higher requires better ventilation in the room. A PPM of 1,200 and above will cause health problems. Measure, don't guess
Healthy generations
Interduct is happy to be involved with the "Learn to ventilate" project. We want to play our part in ensuring healthy future generations. Young people spend a considerable amount of time indoors. So it is even more important that they have constant access to fresh air. It is key to their development.
* report August 2021
** Ministry of Education survey
