Biophilia: The Future of Architectural Design

Sustainable design has long been a priority in the architecture industry. Now it's time to reinvent this already innovative idea. What if we could push the limits of sustainability even further with an entirely new status quo? Imagine neighborhoods and cities stacked with fully sustainable buildings that support not only environmental health, but human health, too. This is the world of biophilic design—a world with built spaces that are as nurturing and regenerative for our habitats as they are for the people who live inside them.

Biophilia was first introduced by E.O. Wilson in a 1970’s publication hypothesizing that the origins of human behavior are genetic. He explained that at our core, humans have an innate need to be close to nature. Conservationists immediately took note of this groundbreaking idea. By the time Wilson released a full book about biophilia in 1984, the architecture industry was already converting his ideas into design solutions. Today, progress in Biophilic design is at the cusp of a grand boom. It’s exactly the type of innovate design that our clients and their customers not only want, but need.

Leading biophilia experts at Terrapin, a design group dedicated to improved environmental and financial performance,  discovered that client profits increased for multiple reasons when designers went the biophilic route. Call it trickle down happiness. In commercial office buildings, employees were happier and thusly more productive when their work areas were biophilic. They were also absent less frequently and reported fewer cases of illness. Even small changes, such as a foliage wall, green accent paint, and a repositioned window with a view resulted in improved morale and better behavior at work. All of this happiness translated to major dollars. Customers were more inclined to spend money and return again to businesses with happier, more productive employees. And that’s just for office environments. While research is still pending on the biophilic effect in the hospitality and retail sectors, this type of design is sure to have major impacts on those profits, too. Guests at shops, restaurants, and hotels will seek out destinations with relaxing nature themes. Would you rather shop in a department store with harsh overhead lighting and drab white walls, or do you prefer an earthy feel with muted lights and trees sprouting from the ceiling? How about a typical economy hotel versus a destination with water features, views of wild animals from your balcony, and indoor trees, all for an affordable nightly cost. The possibilities are as varied as nature itself.

As more and more developers begin to capitalize on these profitable design solutions, biophilic projects are breaking ground around the globe. Some are small scale, such as minor tweaks to patient rooms in hospitals and adding special reading nooks to libraries. Other biophilic projects are enormous in scale, such as Blackadore Cay, a new development currently under construction off the Belize coast. This luxury eco-resort will serve as both an exotic getaway and a conservation center. With features like an onsite water recycling plant and multiple forms of natural energy  harvesting, all buildings will minimally impact the natural environment. Even the geographical placement of the resort will cultivate regrowth of native mangroves and decelerate coastal erosion. Rest assured, these features do not come at the expense of luxury. Spacious living quarters will include state of the art technology and customized accommodations all safely tucked inside a natural haven. Blackadore Cay will be an indulgent island paradise designed to revitalize the land and its visitors. It’s more than simply sustainable-- it’s the epitome of biophilia.

Though the biophilia design revolution began decades ago, now more than ever, it is time to meld the bottom line and environmental awareness into innovative design solutions that promote wellness and prosperity for both our clients and our world. E.O. Wilson wrote, “Perhaps the time has come to cease calling it the 'environmentalist' view, as though it were a lobbying effort outside the mainstream of human activity, and to start calling it the real-world view.” This view is the new future of design. Welcome to the world of biophilia.