Episode 17: THE NOISE ABATEMENT SOCIETY - Lisa Lavia

"Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)"), or so says the title of the single from Elton John's classic 1973 album, 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road', but, here at Quiet Mark, we possibly subscribe more to John Lennon's words in The Plastic Ono Band's 1969 anthemic chant, 'Give Peace a Chance'. 

But can sound, (or rather sound design and soundscapes), really have the power to stop people from fighting, and instead return peacefully to their homes, as the clubs empty on busy Saturday Night?  Well, that's just one of the many NAS Soundscape Programme's adventures in sound that Lisa Lavia, Managing Director of The Noise Abatement Society (NAS), shares in conversation with our host, Simon Gosling, in this episode of The Quiet Mark Podcast.    

'There are no bad sounds. There are only the wrong sounds in the wrong context', explains Lisa as she talks of her work establishing the NAS’ soundscape programme, which has positioned NAS firmly at the global forefront of international soundscape standardisation and applied soundscape practices in the UK through demonstration projects, applied research and policy development. 

The Noise Abatement Society campaigns and conducts research, education and outreach to policymakers, industry, academia, and citizens to solve noise pollution problems for the benefit of all. Listen to Lisa explain its origins, its family ties with Quiet Mark and the work it does to provide solutions to noise pollution, support the next generation of acousticians, encourage better sound design and improve acoustics in the built environment.