Improved indoor environmental quality doubled participants' scores on cognitive function tests, according to a new study by researchers at the Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health's Center for Health and the Global Environment, SUNY Upstate Medical University and Syracuse University. Primary support for the study came from United Technologies UTX, -0.37% and its UTC Climate, Controls & Security business.

"The Impact of Green Buildings on Cognitive Function" study found that employees' cognitive performance scores averaged 101 percent higher in green building environments with enhanced ventilation compared to a conventional building environment.

"When it comes to the decision-making ability of green building occupants, intelligence is in the air," said John Mandyck, United Technologies Chief Sustainability Officer. "We know green buildings conserve natural resources, minimize environmental impacts and improve the indoor environment, but these results show they can also become important human resource tools for all indoor environments where cognitive abilities are critical to productivity, learning and safety.

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