What’s inside the various products that make up our daily environment—in the walls of our buildings or the chemicals in our home? In the spirit of transparency, the windows of the Kellen Gallery will feature a display by the Parsons Healthy Materials Lab of common building materials that may or may not contain harmful toxins. Formed to build healthier lives for people through a reduction of toxins in the building industry, the Parsons Healthy Materials Lab works with partners to help identify better building products that will become part of a library of healthy, affordable products, encouraging leaders to pay attention to products used in their projects. It aims to transform the way that building products are manufactured, eliminate avoidable toxics and support the creation of new materials with a particular focus, through the Healthy Affordable Materials Project, on the building product supply chain that affects affordable housing.

This innovative collaboration between The New School and the Healthy Building Network combines the experienced leadership in toxic reduction strategies from the Healthy Building Network with the administrative design and research competencies of Parsons School of Design. Together with the Health Product Declaration Collaborative and the Green Science Policy Institute, the Healthy Affordable Materials Project is positioned to create radical change in the building sector to improve human health.