LEED IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY FOR NEW SONGDO CITY INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS DISTRCIT DEVELOPMENT, REPUBLIC OF KOREA

Abstract This paper will share the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) implementation strategy for New Songdo City International Business District Development, Republic of Korea, which includes the first LEED-registered projects in Korea. This 1500 acre private development of 350 buildings is a master-planned new city of commercial, institutional, retail, and residential facilities. It is a LEED-ND (Neighborhood Development) Pilot Project. The introduction of LEED in Korea for this city, schematically designed in the US and constructed by Korean contractors, provides an opportunity to enhance the global market for environmentally sensitive design, construction materials and methods, and building operation

Comparison of next-generation portable pollution monitors to measure exposure to PM2.5 from household air pollution in Puno, Peru

Assessment of personal exposure to PM2.5 is critical for understanding intervention effectiveness and exposure-response relationships in household air pollution studies. In this pilot study, we compared PM2.5 concentrations obtained from two next-generation personal exposure monitors (the Enhanced Children MicroPEM or ECM; and the Ultrasonic Personal Air Sampler or UPAS) to those obtained with a traditional Triplex Cyclone and SKC Air Pump (a gravimetric cyclone/pump sampler). We co-located cyclone/pumps with an ECM and UPAS to obtain 24-hour kitchen concentrations and personal exposure measurements. We measured Spearmen correlations and evaluated agreement using the Bland-Altman method. We obtained 215 filters from 72 ECM and 71 UPAS co-locations. Overall, the ECM and the UPAS had similar correlation (ECM rho = 0.91 vs UPAS rho = 0.88) and agreement (ECM mean difference of 121.7 mu g/m(3) vs UPAS mean difference of 93.9 mu g/m(3)) with overlapping confidence intervals when compared against the cyclone/pump. When adjusted for the limit of detection, agreement between the devices and the cyclone/pump was also similar for all samples (ECM mean difference of 68.8 mu g/m(3) vs UPAS mean difference of 65.4 mu g/m(3)) and personal exposure samples (ECM mean difference of -3.8 mu g/m(3) vs UPAS mean difference of -12.9 mu g/m(3)). Both the ECM and UPAS produced comparable measurements when compared against a cyclone/pump setup

Designing a comprehensive behaviour change intervention to promote and monitor exclusive use of liquefied petroleum gas stoves for the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial

Introduction Increasing use of cleaner fuels, such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and abandonment of solid fuels is key to reducing household air pollution and realising potential health improvements in low-income countries. However, achieving exclusive LPG use in households unaccustomed to this type of fuel, used in combination with a new stove technology, requires substantial behaviour change. We conducted theory-grounded formative research to identify contextual factors influencing cooking fuel choice to guide the development of behavioural strategies for the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial. The HAPIN trial will assess the impact of exclusive LPG use on air pollution exposure and health of pregnant women, older adult women, and infants under 1 year of age in Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda.Methods Using the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation–Behaviour (COM–B) framework and Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW) to guide formative research, we conducted in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, observations, key informant interviews and pilot studies to identify key influencers of cooking behaviours in the four countries. We used these findings to develop behavioural strategies likely to achieve exclusive LPG use in the HAPIN trial.Results We identified nine potential influencers of exclusive LPG use, including perceived disadvantages of solid fuels, family preferences, cookware, traditional foods, non-food-related cooking, heating needs, LPG awareness, safety and cost and availability of fuel. Mapping formative findings onto the theoretical frameworks, behavioural strategies for achieving exclusive LPG use in each research site included free fuel deliveries, locally acceptable stoves and equipment, hands-on training and printed materials and videos emphasising relevant messages. In the HAPIN trial, we will monitor and reinforce exclusive LPG use through temperature data loggers, LPG fuel delivery tracking, in-home observations and behavioural reinforcement visits.Conclusion Our formative research and behavioural strategies can inform the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of theory-informed strategies to promote exclusive LPG use in future stove programmes and research studies.Trial registration number NCT02944682, Pre-results