The Importance of Biophilic Design

Sep 7, 20202 min read

"Nature is not a place to visit. It is home."

What is Biophilic Design?

Biophilia is defined as the hypothetical hardwired human inclination to affiliate closely with nature. Biophilic design has become an innovative way of designing spaces where we live, work and learn by incorporating natural materials, natural light, and greenery. The built environment influences stress levels and has a major impact on our overall health. We spend an alarming 90% of our lives indoors. We have become more and more urbanized, resulting in a decline in our connections to nature. Add in the advancement of today’s technology, we tend to forget to switch off and are neglecting that human-nature connection we crave and need. Biophilic design means designing inspirational and restorative places that connect humans to their natural surroundings.

The Importance of Biophilic Design.

The World Health Organisation expects that stress related illness, such as mental health disorders and cardio-vascular disease, will be the two largest contributors to disease by 2020. Research has shown that by incorporating direct or indirect natural elements into our built environment reduces stress, blood pressure levels and heart rates, whilst increasing productivity, creativity and improvement in our over-all well-being. “Biophilic design adds another element to how we think about sustainability, and how we think about human health and well-being in sustainable spaces,” Rhode Island School of Design Nature Lab director Neal Overstrom stated.

Biophilic Office.

If there is one field where biophilic design is gaining popularity, that is office design. Many workers complain that offices are unwelcoming, cold and sterile places. Including biophilic elements in the design can improve the situation. Even more so, it has a significant impact on productivity. Workers’ productivity is one of the top priorities for companies and research has proven that biophilic design can have a positive effect on it, making people less stressed, more concentrated and creative. Some common similarities incorporated in biophilic designs are wood elements, large, bright windows, plants (either real or fake), natural elements (bamboo, rope, wood, rock), and living walls.

Jacada Travel Offices- London.

Peldon Rose was tasked with the design for luxury travel provider, Jacada Travel, located in London, England. Jacada Travel is a luxury travel provider who obtains an office design that celebrates biophilic design, collaboration and inspiration. Through careful planning and a collaborative approach, Peldon Rose was able to deliver a stunning landscape that transports you into a sustainable, authentic and organic workplace. Sustainability and biophilic design were at the heart of the design process as seen in the images below.