Biophilia, Architecture, and the Rise of Wellbeing Design – Salutogenesis
Jana Skokan
Nature = Economy | Sustainable Building & Living ?? | More Efficiency, Resilience & Less Costs | ?? B2B |?? Future Architect |
Regenerative design acknowledges the symbiotic relationship between humans and the built environment within natural systems. It aims to reverse existing damage, restoring ecosystems and support sustainability within the building sector.
The goal is continuous achievement and sustainability of:
Biophilia, regenerative architecture, and salutogenesis are interconnected concepts that highlight a renewed emphasis on holistic health in building design.
Each contributes to creating healthier, more sustainable, and resilient built environments. Understanding their synergy assists architects and designers in crafting spaces that foster human wellbeing, environmental sustainability, and social resilience.
Biophilia refers to humans' innate affinity for nature and natural processes. In architecture, biophilic design integrates natural elements to enhance physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing of occupants.
Regenerative Architecture aims to develop buildings and communities that enhance and restore the surrounding environment by actively contributing to ecosystem health.
Salutogenesis focuses on factors that promote human health and wellbeing, going beyond disease prevention.
Our Buildings as Health Generators
A salutogenic approach integrates wellbeing into the paradigm of regenerative architecture, contrasting with the reductionist approach of sustainable design that primarily targets the absence of ill health. Coined by Aaron Antonovsky, "salutogenesis" emphasizes health generation (Naboni and Havinga, 2019).
Standards like the Well Building Standard seek to implement, validate, and measure features promoting human health and wellness. The World Health Organization defines health as complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing, not merely the absence of illness. These standards define the focus for interior design on human health, concurrently offering regenerative benefits to planetary health.
"Simple concepts like comfort, joy, and aesthetics have historically been absent in traditional hospitals," notes Jan Golembiewski in "Salutogenic design is the base for every building.
Implementing biophilia alongside salutogenesis in buildings involves integrating natural elements to foster coherence, manageability, and meaningfulness. Viewing this through the lens of regenerative architecture introduces additional environmental benefits and efficiencies.
Here are specific strategies for achieving this across various building types:
Views & Maximized Natural Light: Maximize natural light, promoting wellbeing and regulating circadian rhythms. Provide nature views and optrimize the project to the location and its solar conditions. This approach reduces energy needs, particularly for thermal regulation, exemplified by passive solar designs like those from Carl Welty Architects studio in California.
Indoor Plants, Green Walls, and Roofs (Inside and Out): Using potted plants, hanging gardens, or planter boxes to enhance air quality and provide visual and tactile connections to nature. Where space is limited, green walls are a great fit contributing vitality and health benefits. For example, BIOTONOMY piloted a smart green wall systems in Malaga, focusing on water management and environmental comfort.
Natural Materials and Textures : Incorporate wood, stone, bamboo, and other natural materials in flooring, walls, and decor to provide sensory connections to nature. Utilizing diverse natural textures enriches sensory experiences, boosts creativity, productivity, and stress relief.
Water Features : Install fountains, ponds, or aquariums in common areas to provide soothing visual and auditory stimuli, promoting relaxation. Such features can enhance thermal comfort and regulate indoor temperatures, read more here.
Accessibility Design & Outdoor Spaces: Create gardens, courtyards, or rooftop gardens for occupants to connect with nature directly with frequent access, supporting daily routines and microclimate management.
Strategic landscaping with dense shrubs or walls can create low-pressure areas, enhancing indoor comfort and reducing energy use, aligning with eco-friendly principles.
Did you Know? Natural ventilation can lower indoor temperatures by up to 10 degrees, promoting healthier and more sustainable living environments." Research from the University of Cambridge has explored non-mechanical, low-energy methods for moderating indoor climates.
领英推荐
Natural Patterns & Biomorphic Forms: Integrate architectural shapes and patterns inspired by natural forms (fractals, leaf shapes, waves) to enrich spatial design. Design spaces with flowing, organic layouts to reflect natural landscapes, enhancing coherence and connection.
Healthy Air Quality and Ventilation: Ensure effective ventilation to maintain fresh indoor air and reduce pollutants, utilizing natural ventilation, alongside mechanical systems and plants.
Acoustic Comfort Natural Sounds: Incorporate elements that generate natural sounds (e.g., water features, bird songs) to create a serene acoustic environment. Or mploy materials and design tactics to reduce noise pollution, fostering a soothing environment.
Cultural and Local Elements, Local Flora and Fauna: Use native plants and/ or art and materials to create a sense of place, cultural identity, to enrich the spatial experience and connect occupants with their community.
Flexibility and Personalization: Design adaptable spaces that cater to varied uses and personal preferences, empowering occupants to manage their environments effectively.
Redefining Comfort
is the focus on light, heat, ventilation enough?
Biophilic design could also impact social housing initiatives ensuring dignity in living and building standards, while demonstrating financial feasibility without added costs.
Maintenance concerns and leveraging multidisciplinary design teams (architects, landscape designers, ecologists), quantify benefits and enhance stakeholder awareness are some of the challanges we need to adress.
Collaboration with local governments and stakeholders to promote biophilic elements through guidelines and workshops facilitate implementation. Habitharmonia 's focus on biophilic education for real estate development underscores ongoing efforts in this field.
In conclusion, integrating people-nature connections in building design supports climate action while delivering functional, aesthetically pleasing, and financially effective solutions. And the benefits incorporating these principles, are applicable for any type of building.
In case you enjoyed this article, like and follow us for more on sustainable building and living at www.frogeex.com.
About frogeex
frogeex bridges tradition and innovation, uniting an international community of sustainability experts and businesses. Our mission: Climate Action by the Design of Everything. Join us, as we embrace ecological opportunities and reach out today!
Sources and additional Information:
WG4_Final-Book_Regenerative-technologies-for-the-indoor-environment.pdf (eurestore.eu).
Igniting and guiding regenerative futures ...
8 个月Lisanne Havinga, MSc. PhD, Emanuele Naboni good to see that all our significant regenerative work from #Restore still resonating as in this great post
Undisciplined & unconventional | Architect (ARB) + Architectural Technologist (FCIAT) at Acorn Architects | Founder of Healing Buildings | Living Future Accredited LFA | I’m Made By Dyslexia | Recovering academic SFHEA
8 个月Maybe we could have a chat about how we ‘teach’ this to those that really should know better!!!!
Undisciplined & unconventional | Architect (ARB) + Architectural Technologist (FCIAT) at Acorn Architects | Founder of Healing Buildings | Living Future Accredited LFA | I’m Made By Dyslexia | Recovering academic SFHEA
8 个月Wonderful summary! We now need to ensure everyone understands this! Education education education.
Founder, Agri-Tech Producers LLC and Operating Affiliates, who use his patented CRBBP Process for least-cost CO 2 Capture, Environmental Services, and making Climate-Smart Bio-Products, which sequester captured Carbon.
8 个月Jana: Thanks for your message. I am a black, Climate-Tech and Bio-Economy entrepreneur, who with the African Diaspora in mind, has invented and begun commercializing my patented CRBBP Process, which cost-effectively captures lots of CO 2, provides other environmental services, promotes Environmental Justice, and creates new Bio-Economy jobs, converting the resulting plant material into Climate-Smart Bio-Products. Although I primarily grow Bio-Crops to capture CO 2 and to make Bio-Products, I as I hope you and your colleagues will, I am always looking at ways that our innovations can also benefit the poorest communities. In that regard, I have invented something called Pop-Up Shade, which can provide some quick and inexpensive protection from Climate Change’s Heat Island Effect, rather than having communities wait for trees to be planted and mature. So, I have invented patent-pending Pop-Up Shade Amenities, which can be grown to be ready to protect such communities, at the time when Climate Change’s Heat Island Effect is most impactful. See:
Encourage Educators 60+ to Craft Their Legacy Stories without writer's block | Legacy Mentor | Advocate for Lifelong Learning and Creativity
8 个月Got me thinking about a new path --- revamping an idea that has been dormant for a while, waiting for a biophilia nudge ))smiles