One of the highlights of I2SL’s 2025 virtual, international Education Week was the Canadian plenary session on enhancing accessibility in lab design and operation. Keynoted by two speakers from the Rick Hansen Foundation and an architect specializing in accessibility in laboratories, the session challenged participants to empower every user of the lab space and create a meaningful experience for lab users by “building better bumpers” into the design and equipment of laboratories. From more thoughtful layouts of lab furniture to fume hoods that accommodate scientists in wheelchairs, there are a number of best practices for more accessible research workspaces.

Recent policy changes initiated at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have put a spotlight on the overhead charges associated with conducting research and operating scientific and academic institutions. Whether research funding is limited or the process for allowable overhead costs restructured, evaluating lab space is one way to ensure institutions operate efficiently and optimize the lab space available for science. This has been an important focus area of the Bringing Efficiency to Research Grants (BETR Grants) effort for the I2SL University Alliance Group (UAG). University of Colorado (CU) Boulder Green Labs Program Manager and UAG Chair Kathryn Ramirez-Aguilar spoke about these important efficiency opportunities—and the need for research funders to address them—during I2SL’s virtual Education Week April 7.

You’ve probably heard by now that I2SL is preparing to release an automated lab building energy audit tool—the Actionable Insights and Measures (AIM) Report—as part of its Labs2Zero decarbonization program. However, there are a number of other efforts planned for 2025 to improve existing Labs2Zero tools, including the Energy Score, Operational Emissions Score, and the I2SL Lab Benchmarking Tool (LBT); and to develop new offerings, such as an Embodied Carbon Score, certifications, and trainings on how to use the LBT and the AIM Report. Those interested in contributing to these efforts are welcome to join one of several Labs2Zero Technical Advisory Councils (TACs).

Fume hood hibernation is the practice of temporarily disabling a fume hood from active use, while still maintaining the equipment so it can be returned to service when needed. Labs hibernate hoods during research transitions, construction renovations, or times when the space is not in use. With variable air volume (VAV), hibernation presents a cost-saving alternative that reduces energy due to reducing airflow and demands on the HVAC system. Hibernating fume hoods can also reduce a lab’s carbon footprint. As part of their strategy during I2SL’s 2024 Shut the Sash pilot competition, participants at Boston Children’s Hospital were able to identify a number of fume hoods to hibernate through usage audits, an effort that contributed to the team's success in winning the competition.