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INDEX / Indoor Health Council and GO AQS Announce Strategic Collaboration to Promote Unified Global Indoor Air Quality Standards >>>
New partnership introduces a science-backed, open-source framework and the “GO IAQS Score” to harmonize how the world measures and communicates indoor air health.
Nampa, ID – February 5, 2026 – INDEX and its Indoor Health Council, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to advancing indoor environmental health, and GO AQS (Global Open Air Quality Standards), an international non-profit coalition of over 180 experts, today announced a landmark collaboration to promote the Global Open Indoor Air Quality Standards (GO IAQS): A Unified Framework, a comprehensive white paper and standardization system designed to turn complex air quality data into actionable health protection for everyone, everywhere.
Despite humans spending up to 90% of their time indoors, there is currently no single global standard for Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). Regulations vary wildly by country, and consumer devices often use confusing, proprietary scoring systems. This fragmentation leaves building owners, policymakers, and the public without clear benchmarks for safety.
The collaboration between INDEX / Indoor Health Council and GO AQS aims to solve this by promoting and widely establishing an Indoor Exposure Index, built upon the open-source scientific rigor of the GO AQS framework.
A Universal Standard for a Shared Environment
“If we all share the same air, we deserve the same protection,” said Sotirios Papathanasiou, Founder of GO AQS. “By bringing together experts from 32 countries, we have forged an interoperable, accessible set of standards. Partnering with INDEX and its Indoor Health Council allows us to further translate this scientific consensus into real-world adoption, helping to ensure healthy air becomes a global reality.”
The GO IAQS Framework: Starter to Ultimate
The framework, detailed in the white paper, is based on a flexible two-tier system designed to meet diverse global needs:
GO IAQS Starter: An accessible baseline focused on PM2.5 and CO2, enabling immediate adoption using widely available low-cost sensors.
GO IAQS Ultimate: Advanced, health-protective thresholds covering seven critical pollutants (PM2.5, CO2, Ozone, Carbon Monoxide, Formaldehyde, NO2, and Radon), aligned with the strictest global research from the WHO, ASHRAE and other respected organizations.
The GO IAQS Score: Simplifying the Invisible
To cut through the confusion of existing indices, the partnership is promoting the GO IAQS Score. Designed to mirror educational grading systems, it utilizes a simplified 10-0 scale and A (Good), B (Moderate), Z (Unhealthy) categorization.
Crucially, the score addresses accessibility gaps in current markets:
Color-Blind Friendly: Utilizing a rigorously tested palette (Blue, Orange, Red) distinguishable by much of the population with color vision deficiency (CVD).
Real-Time Protection: Unlike standards based on 24-hour averages, the Score is designed for rapid assessment, empowering occupants to make immediate decisions about their environment.
The full white paper, Global Open Indoor Air Quality Standards: A Unified Framework, is available under a Creative Commons license to encourage widespread adoption and innovation.
About INDEX and the Indoor Health Council
INDEX is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to managing or reducing indoor environmental exposures and improving public health outcomes. The Indoor Health Council is the voice of INDEX, focused on public outreach and communication.
About GO AQS
Founded in September 2024, GO AQS (Global Open Air Quality Standards) brings together industry professionals, researchers, and community representatives from more than 32 countries committed to establishing open, transparent, and scientifically grounded air quality standards to help ensure safe environments for all.
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