Journal of biophilic design - articles, research, podcasts, videos on biophilia
London’s iconic Barbican conservatory couldn’t have been more fitting for a conference dedicated to the immense benefits of a world designed with biophilic principles. Visionaries, designers, architects, lawyers, academics, entrepreneurs, advocates and professionals across various walks in life, came together to share their perspectives for one full day in a series of talks.
From Edible bus-stops to pocket parks and Roof gardens on the tops of London Banks, journalist Hartley Milner takes us on a trip around the UK and London highlighting the difference nature has made to spaces, and how clever and heart-felt use of Nature in Design has transformed lives.
Read on for not only some interesting statistics but also there is a compelling interview with the architect of the beautiful and inspiring Maggie’s Cancer Care centre in Southampton.
Sound may not be one of the first things we think of in biophilic design but what most people want from the auditory environment is intrinsically linked to nature.
Our hearing is often key in our perception of the world around us; it helps us to interact, communicate and be aware of what is happening and impending change. It is designed for the outside, a world without walls and other hard reflective surfaces that focus sound and allow it to build up to levels where it affects our concentration, increases levels of anxiety, negatively affects performance and interrupts our sleep….
How many times have I written, “it’s not rocket science…nature is good for you?” Well for the umpteenth time, I’m saying it again, and so is NBC. A recent NBC article discusses why natural scenery improves your mood and makes you more productive. They quote the results of an article published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology which outlines the benefits of having just 40 second green views can have on sustaining attention, less errors and more consistency. This is because it boosts sub-cortical arousal and cortical attention control.
70 million working days are lost each year due to mental ill-health, costing Britain £70-£100 billion, according to the Mental Health Foundation, with a 24% increase to the number of working days lost in the past 6 years the number of working days due to stress, depression and anxiety. How do we improve this? The solution is closer and cheaper than you think…
“Rethinking the intensive care environment: considering nature in nursing practice” is an excellent paper by Claire Minton, MN, RN, Lesley Batten, PhD, RN, it “explores evidence related to the negative impacts of the intensive care unit environment on patient outcomes and explores the potential counteracting benefits of ‘nature-based’ nursing interventions as a way to improve care outcomes.”…
A fascinating report in HERD: Health Environments Research and Design Journal, reports results of research studying the influence of nature stimulus in enhancing the birth experience.
“These findings support the study hypothesis which states that the nature images would influence the labor experience positively. In addition, the findings emphasize the importance of incorporating non-pharmacological techniques in the labor and delivery room (LDR) units to soothe the pain. Adding nature imagery to the LDR environment can be one of these techniques.”
What would you rather stare at, flappy A4 photocopies, manky laminated words, nothing visually attractive. Would you create your home like this? Making an environment pleasant for all of us, whether Doctors or Patients should be important. Psychology and positive feelings engender healing and recovery. That’s not rocket science and is generally accepted. So what if there is an affordable solution that would help accelerate healing and bed space? Interesting, no?
We developed our biophilic range of fine art so it can support the wellness movement and help improve the lives of workers, patients and families. Our Hyper-Real print range is water-proof and fire-retardant and can go anywhere from surgery to recovery room, board-room to nursery, wet-room to a living wall.
While ideally one would install natural light, plants, waterfalls within a hospital environment, of course it is not practical in buildings already designed and built. Often there are no windows in rooms, or recovery rooms are soulless places, missing something natural. Hospitals and healthcare spaces are sterile environments for health reasons and so they should be, one advantage of installing Argenta-Wellness imagery into any recovery room, surgery, waiting rooms, A and E, Isolation rooms is that they can be cleaned with detergent (they are waterproof and fireproof). You can even install them in wet rooms to create a feeling of wellness as patients are washing, bringing a spa feeling to an otherwise unlikely environment. So also there are no concerns for an increase in maintenance costs, as they can be cleaned and wiped as part of the usual clean-up procedures.
Bringing the outdoors in can enhance the wellbeing of staff and patients alike, encouraging staff retention and happiness, and recovery for patients freeing up beds.
