Did you know for every £1 you spend on even simple Biophilic Design enhancements, you could get £2.70 back? So reveals the new research conducted by Joyce Chan Shoof Architect and Sustainability Lead at the UK Parliament.

Using a scientific approach with control environments, adding biophilic design elements to test the effect and then removing them to further test the effect of their absence, Joyce explains the rigorous approach she took over a seven-year period to arrive at her conclusion.

This is a phenomenal breakthrough for those of us working in Biophilic Design.

You can read the whole report here: https://plplabs.com/reap-what-you-sow-2/

And come and see Joyce present the research in person at Workplace Trends in London on the 18th April 2024 https://workplacetrends.co/events/wtrs24-prog/

We often have struggled trying to articulate the economic benefits of Biophilic Design, this research can be used to support arguments why businesses need it in the workplace.

Joyce has also developed a framework to help designers work out what we need and the impact it will have. Using existing frameworks, like the Flourish model (as advocated by Professor Derek Clements Croome) and others, she has woven a great new model we can all hang our designs on…. READ ON and LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries and this fact is yet another reason we need more Biophilic Design included into urban planning, architecture, design, and every environmental facet of city and town life.

Robert Delius, Associate Director, Architect and Head of Sustainability at Stride Treglown is doing just that. Aiming to maximise biodiversity through design, Robert has a passion to create an Eden, where buildings and landscapes come together and there's a feeling of abundance, where there's nature and birdsong and insect life and a powerful sense of well-being.

Robert’s background in housing design and master planning has set him up in good stead to create good design and great places.  Distinctiveness and place making are a thread through his career.  He also has a particular interest in regenerative design and how great design can have a measurably positive impact on climate, ecology and people.  In short, he is a brilliantly creative proactive advocate for Biophilic Design.

He believes that forging a closer connection to the natural world, is extremely good for our well-being as well as being good for the planet and good for nature, and his passion for Biophilic Design is life-long. One of the projects he discusses is his Great Bow Yard project in Somerset from 2008. This had gained media attention because it had been flagged as the most energy efficient scheme in the UK.  Having recently revisited the project, Robert notes that residents, are not only pleased with the low energy costs, but were actually most enthused by the shared garden and the feelings of well-being that stem from it being a beautiful spot.

In this podcast, Robert talks of his background and upbringing and how that has led him to his passion for living in harmony with nature.  He discusses how on his projects, and those of his colleagues, he always looks to introduce as many opportunities as possible for planting in designs, both internally and externally to reduce hard space and introduce a softer more natural element…. READ ON and LISTEN to the PODCAST

Robert Gardner is CEO and Co-Founder of Rebalance Earth. With over 20 years of experience in the financial industry, he has a unique expertise in sustainability, pensions, and wealth management and believes that money can be a force for good.

Rebalance Earth, is a fund manager that redirects the flow of private capital to protect and restore Nature.  Their mission is to drive the transition to a nature-based economy by enabling the flow of private capital to protect and restore nature. Rebalance Earth achieves this by creating opportunities for investors to achieve sustainable financial returns from projects to restore Nature.

Robert is passionate about the idea of “natural capital”.  He believes that investment in the environment shouldn’t simply be about climate change but should take a broader approach.  He sees a future in which biophilia is prominent and discussion of environment-conscious investment should include reduced biodiversity loss, rewilding, and all aspects of being in tune with nature.

Robert sees nature as the most valuable asset class on the planet. It provides everything from clean air to carbon capture and biodiversity; not forgetting that a balanced ecosystem is essential to create pollination and soil fertility for our food.

The investment community currently operates an extractive financial model that has been using all of nature's resources for free, not valuing them and, worse than that, destroying them.  Rebalance Earth is taking steps to build and propagate a more sustainable, biophilic approach.

In this podcast, Robert talks about how… READ ON and LISTEN to the PODCAST

The British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) is the only professional institute for interior designers in the UK. Our growing membership represents both the commercial and residential sectors, from heritage to cutting edge. In addition to rigorous entry requirements which assess training, experience and professionalism, they require our members to continue their professional development throughout their career to ensure their continued expertise in design process, practice and regulatory matters.

For those wishing to find an interior designer or to confirm the credibility of a potential interior designer they offer a directory of our Registered Interior Designers.

Each year BIID celebrates the very best of British interior design through its awards program.  The BIID Interior Design Awards showcase the best interior design projects completed across the UK.

Winners are awarded across 7 regional categories ranging from the largest commercial project to the smallest residential dwelling.  In addition, there are two landmark prices – the Interior of the Year Prize, which is awarded to the best interior design project in the UK and the Anna Whitehead Prize, which is awarded to the best achievement in sustainable interior design. 9 awards will be given out in total, along with acknowledgements of Highly Commended projects.

In this podcast, we are joined by two previous award winners and one of the judges of this year’s awards to discuss the value of the awards programme. Throughout the discussion it is clear that just adding sustainable materials to a design doesn’t make the overall design sustainable.  Consideration has to be given to materials being appropriate for the design; the design can’t simply include “box-ticking” elements.

The participants are all clear that a sustainable design doesn’t involve a compromise on aesthetics.  Indeed, taking a biophilic approach to design can enhance the look and feel of a space and contribute to a deeper, more meaningful aesthetic that resonates with the principles of balance with nature.

Steve Tonkin is the Dark Sky Advisor to Cranborne Chase National Landscape, in Wiltshire. Cranborne Chase is a designate Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty that, since 2019, has been recognised as an International Dark Sky Reserve.

Steve can pinpoint 4 October 1957 as the first became aware of dark skies. His family were, at the time, living 8 miles outside Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and his father took him outside to see if they could see Sputnik which had been launched the previous day. It was his first time looking up at a pristine dark sky and it triggered a life-long passion for astronomy which has made him aware of the effects of light pollution, and he has been raising the issue with anyone who will listen for the last 30 years.

After a first career as a telecommunications engineer, he did a BSc in Human Environmental Studies, then postgraduate work in technology policy, before training as a teacher. He taught physics, maths and astronomy in a variety of settings for 35 years, before retiring from teaching to concentrate on astronomy outreach activities. He has written several books on practical astronomy, has a monthly column in BBC Sky at Night Magazine, and is a regular speaker on astronomical topics.

Starting with a programme he made for BBC Radio Bristol in the 1980s, Steve has long been an advocate of reducing light pollution. He supported the Cranborne Chase’s International Dark Sky Reserve bid as a volunteer, taking sky quality readings and supporting the stargazing evenings by giving talks and showing people the night sky. His primary task as Dark Skies Advisor is to continue and consolidate the good work that has already been done and strengthen the Cranborne Chase’s standing as an International Dark Sky Reserve.

Light pollution is a global issue. The pollution itself is known to affect human health and wildlife behaviour and that is before considering the wasted energy involved in sending light upwards instead of downwards to where it is required. To take a Biophilic approach to the design of lighting is to reduce light pollution with direct and indirect benefits to nature… READ ON and LISTEN to the PODCAST…

Morgan Taylor leads the biodiversity side of Greengage, a multidisciplinary environmental consultancy who cover everything from energy and carbon assessments, sustainability, health, wellbeing, socio-economic assessment, and EIA management as well as the whole gamut of biodiversity assessment through to planning.

As designers, architects, or planners, we all need to be mindful of the impact our ideas, advice and decisions have on the world around us. We recorded this interview in the summer last year* Their work is focused outside of the legislative and planning policy sphere in the world of natural capital and ecosystem service value assessment. So rather than working with developers where they are only brought in because there is a potential impact on biodiversity in the first place, they're working with a lot of people with regards to asset management, land management, informing how financial capital is put towards recovery of natural capital across managed assets.

 We’ve got hundreds, maybe thousands of years of degradation and we need to take measures and understanding to address the impacts of our actions, and account for the significant loss of biodiversity particularly since the Industrial Revolution.

Morgan outlines all the different levels of legislation and planning policy that impact biodiversity in the built environment. He highlights three aspects of legislation and regulation that particularly drive positive change...

We speak with Marco Gastoldi, interior designer and Associate at Gensler, who in collaboration with some amazing partners have created the theme of the Workspace Design Show in London this year. The Theme is “Bloom”, and we speak in this podcast about the growing awareness of Biophilic Design, how it has environmental and psychological benefits, that it is based on science, neuroscience and also the many different ways of integrating nature in the built environment.

Marco celebrates the fact that Biophilic Design is important for us, that we have a primordial innate connection to nature, an instinct. This connection produces hormones that support feelings of belonging and collaboration which are crucial to performance and connection. Humans are biological organisms and Biophilic Design supports the mind body system in terms of health and wellbeing.

“Deep down we are aware that our connection to nature is vital. We forget that recreation is recreating and restoring ourselves. We spend 90% of our time indoors and there is so much data and evidence to prove that Biophilic Design is good in the workplace. For instance the Human Spaces report that proves Biophilic Design can improve productivity by 6% and creativity by 15%. We know that connection with nature, improves individual self-esteem and mood, the presence of water for example creates a relaxing and calming effect.”

Marco also talks about Ecological Balance Theory which refers to how we prefer nature resembling colours like green and blue, but not all natural environments are green, so it’s also important to tailor to local colour pallet and ecosystems – so it’s place based.

How do we design schools so not only children are inspired, teachers want to come to work, places are healthy, the building sustainable, the landscape regenerative, and supports biodiversity? The answer is Biophilic Design. De Verwondering is a primary school in the Netherlands, designed by architecture firm ORGA. The design won the 2023 Stephen R. Kellert Biophilic Design Award from Living Future Europe in 2023, and justifiably so and is featured in the Education issue of The Journal of Biophilic Design.

The name of school means ‘sense of wonder’ or 'amazement', referring to the sensation of curiosity in children that is triggered when they come into contact with the natural world. Any parallels with ‘The Sense of Wonder’, Rachel Carson’s timeless publication from 1960, are coincidental, but both very much speak to the same sentiment.

In this podcast we speak with Gijs Bruggink, Chef de bureau of ORGA and discuss the importance of using Natural building materials, and how we need to push boundaries for sustainable and regenerative buildings.

The difference the Biophilic Design of the school has made to the teachers, staff, and children is phenomenal, and it also shows when an organization wants to do something better with nature deeply embedded into it right from the start of the project. The difference it can make to the business, the reduction of staff and student absenteeism, the improved recruitment, overall wellbeing, air quality, acoustics and so much more.

 “It is an interesting time for designers. There are a lot of problems which need solutions nowadays with climate change and biophilic design just has a lot of answers. Not only is it beautiful but it's interesting from the health perspective and it's beneficial from a business perspective because if your users of the building are able to perform better to be more productive and they feel better, it's good for your business. There's a lot of research and science supporting these these ideas and these benefits,” says Gijs.

One of the wonderful things about the Der Verwondering design is that they have created a really healthy learning environment for children and the people working there to help them get a good education. There are also all sorts of connections to nature in the building which builds affinity with nature, and children can discover things on their own, they have a natural adventurous inquisitive nature.

Dr Leighton Phillips Director of Research, Innovation and University Partnerships for the NHS Wales, Honorary Professor Aberystwyth University, and director on the Hywel Dda University Health Board joins us to share how they are bringing in Biophilic Design into healthcare in South West Wales. Part of his role is about questioning what we want the future to look like.

Dr Phillips shares with us how fundamentally important the natural environment is, how it profoundly influences our health and wellbeing. What he finds captivating about biophiilc design, is that there is an opportunity. “With over 1200 hospitals, and a million staff and nearly everyone in the UK having some interaction with the NHS services just imagine the health and planetary impact of the NHS embracing biophilic design.” ….

From designing a detailed picture of the New York Skyline in moss to how we need to design with biophilia to help mitigate climate change this great podcast with Lily Turner explores how we are just starting to realise the very real benefits that Living walls can bring to our cities, and our work and healing spaces.

 Lily Turner is an environmentalist, biophilic designer and living wall specialist. She's also the director of green walls at Urban Strong, the design-build maintenance firm offering services for green building technology solutions. In 2013, she co-founded Urban Blooms a non-profit to bring large-scale, publicly accessible living walls to dense urban environments. It was after Hurricane Katrina she was rebuilding homes, restoring landscapes, repairing drip irrigation systems and fields and got to do a lot of great community projects which inspired her to launch Urban Blooms, which aims to bring greenery back into the built environment to benefit people in the community.