Using Biophilic Design to Manage Health and Wellbeing During a Global Pandemic

Over the years, there has been an increasing reliance on biophilic design in the built environment as more people are catching on to the positive benefits that an increased connection to nature can have on our health and wellbeing. Biophilic design has been acknowledged as a key aspect to designing the healthiest spaces possible in building certification standards, such as the internationally recognised WELL building standard.

As a result, we are seeing biophilic design features across all sectors, from domestic settings, to retail and hospitality spaces, in education and healthcare, and probably most of all, in the workplace. If you look at the research behind it, it’s easy to understand why. Biophilic design has been found to increase productivity and reduce stress and absenteeism, lower heart rates and aid sleep, enhance test scores and reduce symptoms of ADHD, accelerate healing and reduce the need for pain medication, increase enjoyment of and time spent in hospitality spaces, and enhance a sense of community and belonging.

So, where has all this come from? Biophilia, meaning ‘a love of nature’, is a term popularised by American biologist Edward O Wilson in the 1980s when he observed our increasing disconnection with the natural world due to urbanisation. This innate desire for a nature connection stems from human evolution in natural settings, and the theory goes that we should feel healthiest in natural environments where we once thrived. That’s not to say that we would always choose a camping trip over a city break, but often memories of nature spring to mind when we think of somewhere we feel calm and restored.

This is particularly true in the current situation we now find ourselves in, under lockdown and craving a connection with the outside world more than ever. During this time, there has been a noticeable rise in the appreciation of nature as our options to go elsewhere have become limited. People are taking up running, have the time to go for long walks, and – for those that have one – gardening has become an enjoyable activity rather than a chore. And how is it making us feel? Well, naturally, better. If nature connections can reduce stress, then surely there is no time like the present to reap those benefits.

However, whilst increased trips to local nature spots might be helping those of us that feel safe enough to do so, we are all still spending far more time in our homes, with many unable to leave at all. Ordinarily, we would experience diversity and variety throughout the day; however, ‘stay home’ means we are missing out on many of the spaces that enrich our lives.

So, now more than ever we should be looking at the impact of our environments on our physical, mental and emotional health, and thinking about how to make them as healthy and as diverse as possible. This leads us onto biophilic design – bringing our ‘love of nature’ indoors.

If you’ve heard of biophilic design, the first thing that might come to mind is a space full of lush greenery. Whilst this is an important way to create a natural connection indoors, biophilic design goes much deeper than that.

We evolved in rich, diverse landscapes and, as such, variety is key to health and wellbeing. Considering what we can smell, touch and hear, and creating textural, olfactory and acoustic variation is just as important as bringing in real elements of nature. Further, diversity is about creating different zones and ‘destination points’ for certain activities and times of day, just as we’d find in nature.

As such, biophilic design is a multi-sensory, humancentred approach based on three core principles that look at the bigger picture:

• The first is creating ‘direct connections to nature’ by introducing elements of nature or natural systems such as the use of plants, trees, sunlight, water features and fresh air

• The second is ‘indirect connections to nature’, which are design strategies that use references to, or representations of nature, such as the use of natural forms, colours, patterns, textures and even technologies

• The third is our ‘human spatial response’, which entails mimicking the spatial qualities of natural environments to evoke or enhance human responses – be that exciting, stimulating or calming, restorative spaces.

With so many of us working from home, our connections have been stripped back to the bare minimum, yet we continue to function as best as we can. We are experimenting with new methods of communication, and whilst these may not allow for the most effective and innovative conversations, creating more inspiring, nature-filled spaces at home might just go that extra mile towards stimulating imagination and productivity. Who knows how long we’ll be working from home for, or if we’ll get back to full-time office hours, so putting some extra thought into that ‘home office’ you created in your spare room might not be a bad idea.

However, when it does come to going back to offices, biophilic design can help there too. The thought of a ‘post-COVID workplace’ sounds anxietyinducing, with talk of floor lines to mark distances and limiting the number of people per work area. There are elements of biophilic design that can be used to help with social distancing in a way that also enhances both perceived and real aspects of health and wellbeing. Planted partitions, leafy greenery and water features can bring nature into a space as well as provide some screening and add distance between people. This can also help to infer a sense of wellbeing through the perception of a space being ‘healthy’. Thriving, lush green walls signal life and clean air. Whilst plants can reduce toxins, not viruses, nature connections do reduce stress, which subsequently improves immune system functioning – something we could all do with now.

The bottom line here is, if we stand a higher chance of staying healthier, both physically and mentally, by using biophilic design, then why not? Designing for health and wellbeing has never been so important, and in a time where so much is out of our control, having something for us to nurture in our built environment that nurtures us back simply makes sense.