Human Habitats

August 9, 2021

Georgia Tech’s Student Housing Supports Dynamic Living Experience

In January 2020, Georgia Institute of Technology began the process of renovating its Harris and Smith residence halls to foster a more dynamic student living experience. An active campus with more than 32,000 students, Georgia Tech’s Facilities Design and Construction team was accustomed to working under tight deadlines. However, this project was made more complex…

February 16, 2021

Purpose-Built Spaces Designed for Experiential Learning

As a leading polytechnic and one of Canada’s largest apprenticeship trainers, the Northern Alberta Institute of  Technology (NAIT) offers world-class higher education  that propels industry, innovation, and sustainability. NAIT’s campuses in Edmonton and Spruce Grove serve more than 50,000 students from across Canada and around the world. With a concerted focus on applied sciences and…

August 27, 2020

Wellbeing in “The New Normal” Through Biophilic Design

As we consider options to return to public spaces, it is paramount for us to incorporate health and wellbeing as ultimate drivers. The obvious focus in this instance is on minimizing contact and supporting respiratory health. It is also paramount that we support each other by utilizing interventions that foster our emotional wellbeing.

January 15, 2020

Identifying the 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design

We spend an estimated 11 hours a day on technology and up to 93% of our time indoors. Now more than ever, harnessing Biophilia in the design of our urban living and working environments is vital to our health and well-being. Learn about the 14 individual elements of biophilic design and how to incorporate them to collectively enhance the well-being of an interior space.

January 2, 2019

Integrating Architecture with Nature and Well-Being

“Given the pace and scale of construction today with its adversarial, dominative relationship with nature, the integration of nature with the built environment is one of the greatest challenges of our time.” – Stephen R. Kellert This challenge that has been embraced by the International Living Future Institute’s (ILFI) Stephen R. Kellert Biophilic Design Award entrants,…

June 22, 2018

Biophilic Design in Urban Architecture: The Oasia Hotel in Singapore

The Oasia Hotel Downtown, designed by Woha, a Singapore-based architectural firm, is one of the most stunning skyscrapers in Asia. There is, first, the signal-red mesh envelope, a splash of color unlike anything in its neighborhood, and then the surreptitious patches of green that seem to slowly envelop the building. Planted façades are not new…

October 24, 2017

What is Sound and Why Does it Matter?

Sound – especially sound in the spaces where we work – affects us far more than you might think. When it comes to designing interior spaces, acoustic considerations are often put aside or completely ignored in favor of purely visual aesthetics. However, condemning office workers, hospital staff, students and teachers, guests in hotels and even…

September 29, 2017

The True Cost of Noise

Dead silence can be an intimidating working environment. Some sound in any workplace is generally desirable: pleasing background sounds like the gentle, indecipherable babble of colleagues speaking, one’s own choice of music or perhaps the sounds of nature coming through an open window. However, much of the sound in typical workplaces is undesirable: ringing phones,…

December 8, 2016

Simulated Nature Research Gets Real, Part II

This two-part article is a collaboration between Bill Witherspoon, founder, Skye Witherspoon, CEO, and myself in my role as Director of Research Initiatives at The Sky Factory. It was inspired by Bill Browning’s Real vs. Simulated Nature section in The Global Impact of Biophilic Design in the Workplace report, and its timely review to how…