Your office has as much biodiversity as a rainforest.

Q&A: Jessica Green, biodiversity scientist, on the microbial ecosystems in our buildings

By Christina Hernandez Sherwood | June 3, 2013, 3:00 AM PDT

While some scientists spend their lives studying the rainforest or the ocean, Jessica Green considers ecosystems closer to home: offices, classrooms and even bathrooms. A biodiversity scientist and director of the Biology and the Built Environment Center at the University of Oregon, Green’s work aims to understand the role of these microbial ecosystems on human health.

I spoke recently with Green about bio-informed design, creating objects based on microbes and combatting hospital-acquired infections. Below are excerpts from our interview.

We think of ecosystems as a rainforest or the ocean. But you study the ecosystems in office buildings and even bathrooms. Why should we care about them?/.../