New project launched into the benefit of indoor plants
The University of Surrey is leading a project to fully understand the environmental and wellbeing benefits of indoor plants
A new project launched by the university of Surrey is looking into the effects that indoor plants can have on both the environment and mental health.
The project is combining experts from around the country to learn exactly how effectives plants can be.
The project brings together a multidisciplinary team of experts from the University of Oxford, University of York, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), University of Bath, and Cranfield University to investigate how indoor plants can improve air quality, regulate temperature and control humidity inside buildings.
With £600,000 funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), researchers aim to conduct collaborative studies to expand knowledge on the broader health benefits of indoor greening, create practical guidelines and actionable solutions to enhance the design of both working and living spaces, and promote the wider use of green infrastructure.
The research will build on existing knowledge, and has wide-ranging potential benefits, providing evidence on whether and how indoor plants improve IEQ and create healthier spaces.
This includes studying air quality, hygrothermal control – which is the regulation of temperature and humidity to create a comfortable and healthy indoor environment, and the biological, social, and psychological effects of indoor greening.
It's being led by Professor Prashant Kumar, who explained to us all the potential benefits indoor plants could have.
"So for example they could help with regulating the micro environments like the temperature, relative humidity.
They can help with the indoor air quality. They will also help with mental health and well-being"
Professor Kumar then explains why this project is needed.
"So this new project is about what these plans do to us in terms of changing the microclimate, it could also impact positively the indoor air quality, but there is very little evidence which gives you a very clear indication.
So this whole project is about bringing together the exports across the UK to build that understanding in terms of what this plant could do, how you can optimise their benefits, what you could do in different environments and what do they mean actually in the changing climatic environment."