Journal of Biophilic Design copertina

Journal of Biophilic Design

Journal of Biophilic Design

Di: Vanessa Champion editor Journal of Biophilic Design
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Welcome to our podcast series from the Journal of Biophilic Design, where we interview workplace consultants, futurists, interior designers, architects, urban planners and those working in healthcare, wellbeing and other industries to find out the latest on Biophilic Design. www.journalofbiophilicdesign.com

Content copyright Journal of Biophilic Design, opinions copyright the speaker. Igiene e vita sana Psicologia Psicologia e salute mentale Scienza Scienze sociali
Episodi
  • One minute to breathe. How images of nature can help save our A&E staff

    One minute to breathe. How images of nature can help save our A&E staff
    Jan 21 2026
    Emergency departments are some of the most punishing workplaces in healthcare. Clinicians move in seconds from breaking catastrophic news to families, to resuscitating a dying patient, to reassuring a parent whose child has a simple fever. We rightly talk a lot about patient experience. We talk far less about what these relentless environments do to the people who work in them.A pilot study published in the Journal of Biophilic Design suggests that something as simple as one minute of looking at nature-based art can measurably ease that burden.The research was led by emergency physician and US Army major Dr Anant Shukla at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire, with Dr Harman Gill , an emergency and critical care physician, as senior researcher. Their lived experience in A&E (ED) is the backdrop to the work.Gill recounts a single shift that started with the emergency delivery of a baby girl in the middle of a chaotic winter flu season. Within 40 minutes, the new mother was in catastrophic postpartum haemorrhage. The same team that had just celebrated a new life found themselves fighting to save another. Then, as he points out, they must walk into the next cubicle – whether it’s a heart attack or “just the sniffles”, and deliver the same standard of calm, competent care. What happened 20 minutes earlier is invisible to the next patient, but not to the clinician’s nervous system.Shukla describes the ED as “controlled chaos”, windowless, noisy, metal and plastic surfaces, a “cave” in the hospital basement. During Covid, he noticed something striking, upstairs, patients on certain wards with views of nature or biophilic art were using less narcotic pain medication. Staff downstairs had nothing similar. “We do so much for patients and visitors,” he says. “Why not for clinicians?”From that question came a this experiment: could just one minute of viewing biophilic art shift clinicians’ emotional state in a meaningful way?The studyIn the ED’s staff “cave”, one wall was given over to large-scale photographs of local New Hampshire landscapes: a mountain stream, autumn foliage, a cluster of birch trees in winter, a calm pond. The works, by a local photographer, were intentionally familiar – the sort of scenes you could walk out and see within a few miles of the hospital.Clinicians, doctors, nurses, advanced practice providers and residents, could, when they had a moment, scan a QR code next to the artwork. They completed a brief validated survey (using the Daniels Five-Factor Measure of Affect) rating how they felt “right now” on items such as calm, at ease, anxious, tired, gloomy, annoyed. They were then instructed to look only at the art for one minute, using a timer on their phone, and repeat the survey immediately afterwards.In a level 1 trauma centre, even getting people to pause for sixty seconds is a challenge. Yet enough staff participated over time for the team to analyse pre‑ and post‑scores using standard statistical tests.Key findings of the biophilic art studyThe results were modest in scale but statistically robust, especially given the small sample and chaotic setting:- Anxiety fell from an average score of 2.6 to 2.0 , with a p‑value of 0.003 (meaning only a 0.3% likelihood this was due to chance).- Calm increased from 3.6 to 4.3 (p = 0.02 ).- Feeling “at ease” increased from 3.3 to 4.0 (p = 0.003 ).- Negative feelings such as feeling *gloomy*, *tired* and *annoyed* all showed statistically significant decreases.In plain language: after just one minute of viewing nature imagery, clinicians felt less anxious, less gloomy and calmer and at ease, in a way that is extremely unlikely to be explained by random fluctuation.The researchers are careful not to oversell this as a cure for burnout. No picture can fix under‑staffing, moral injury, or a broken healthcare system. But it can, as Gill puts it, create a “mandatory pause”, a tiny, biophilically designed, evidence‑based intervention that gives staff a momentary psychological reset.What this means for A&E designIf a single minute in front of one picture can move the needle, what might a genuinely biophilic emergency department achieve?At present, most EDs, in the US and UK alike, are buried in basements, windowless, acoustically harsh and visually sterile. Design decisions are dominated by managerial concerns, like where to put trolleys, equipment, computers. By contrast, high‑performing companies like tech firms deliberately shape workplaces to support focus, recovery and creativity.This research can help empower staff and designers to argue for change. Windows where possible, daylight‑mimicking lighting where it isn’t, local and seasonal nature imagery, quieter materials, designated biophilically designed micro‑spaces where staff can pause and look at something other than a monitor or a curtain track.Clinicians are not an endlessly ...
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    1 ora e 13 min
  • Biophilic Design and Innovative Place Typologies for a new Generation of Developers

    Biophilic Design and Innovative Place Typologies for a new Generation of Developers
    Nov 13 2025
    We have a climate crisis, housing shortages, and increasing urban disconnection, we need a pioneering radical approach to development that puts nature and human flourishing at its core. Human Nature, led by Joanna Yarrow, are creating living, breathing ecosystems that challenge how we normally go about urban design."We've boxed ourselves into a corner by having the starting point that we are separate from nature," Joanna explains. Places should not just exist alongside nature, they should be fundamentally integrated with it.Human Nature has identified three critical place typologies that could transform how we live. These are urban neighbourhoods, rural clusters, and new settlements. Their flagship project, the Phoenix in Lewes, East Sussex, demonstrates what's possible when we reimagine development."Places aren't just buildings. They are infrastructure, streets, parks, alleyways, rivers – a collection of components that includes hardware like pavements and water systems, and software like community services."The Phoenix project is a testament to this holistic approach. Spanning 7.9 hectares of former industrial land, it will become the UK's largest bio-based development, featuring 685 homes constructed primarily from natural materials like timber, hemp, and lime.But this isn't just about sustainable construction. It's about redesigning entire lifestyles. "We want to create the optimal precondition for a better, healthy, and more sustainable way of life." This means designing neighbourhoods where car dependency becomes unnecessary, where food production is integrated, and where nature isn't an afterthought but the central organising principle.Her background – growing up in a 64-acre working wood in Sussex – deeply influences her approach. "Nature was my playground," she recalls. This personal connection translates into a professional mission to mainstream sustainable living.The challenge, she argues, isn't technological. "Most of this is not rocket science. Most of this has been done already. We don't need to reinvent the wheel." Instead, we need collective will and a systemic reimagining of development.We should review the concept of “developers” to be not just extractive profit-makers, but as stewards with critical societal duty. "You are shaping people's lives for decades, generations to come. What a responsibility."Everyone can contribute to change. "The power sits with all of us to weave this into our everyday life.” This might mean walking a different route to work, engaging with local green spaces, or challenging existing development models.The benefits extend far beyond environmental considerations. These nature-integrated spaces promise improved mental health, community connection, and a sense of belonging that modern developments often strip away."Wouldn't it be wonderful, if our schools had forests instead of fences? If our walk to work included fruit trees, flowers, and bird song? If our homes and offices could breathe without us needing to open a window?"Projects like the Phoenix prove such transformative development is possible. By demonstrating viable alternatives, Human Nature is creating blueprints for a regenerative future. We can redesign our built environment to enhance not compromise both human and natural systems.https://humannature-places.com/Bonus show notes: Advice for Developers to Design Better, Based on Joanna Yarrow's insights:1. Shift Your Mindset- Stop seeing development as unit production and profit extraction- Become "stewards" rather than "extractors"- Recognise that you're shaping lives for generations, not just building temporary structures 2. Embrace Holistic Design- Don't just design buildings, design entire "places" that include: * Infrastructure * Streets * Parks * Community services * Green spaces- Consider the entire ecosystem, not just the physical structure 3. Prioritise Collaboration- Practice "deep collaboration" with: * Local communities * Specialist architects and designers * Environmental experts * Interest groups- Be transparent and open-source about your learning and processes 4. Focus on Positive Impact- Design with three core considerations: * Climate positive outcomes * Nature enhancement * Human flourishing- Create places that inspire and enable sustainable living5. Think Beyond Traditional Boundaries- Consider different place typologies: * Urban neighbourhoods * Rural clusters * New settlements- Customise design to specific bioregional contexts6. Integrate Nature Seamlessly- Don't treat nature as an "other" or additional feature- Centre nature in every design decision- Create multi-sensory experiences that connect humans with natural systems7. Enable Sustainable Lifestyles- Design spaces that make sustainable living: * Easy * Attractive * Accessible- Reduce car dependency- Incorporate food production- Create green corridors and natural infrastructure8. Engage Communities- Run collaborative design ...
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    53 min
  • Biophilic design: buzzword or big deal? A Workplace Geeks investigation™️

    Biophilic design: buzzword or big deal? A Workplace Geeks investigation™️
    Nov 6 2025
    Welcome to this special episode of the Journal of Biophilic Design podcast. We’re really excited to share this feature from our very first Biophilic Design Conference, which took place at the iconic Barbican Centre in London. It was a landmark moment — the UK’s first-ever conference dedicated entirely to biophilic design — and we were joined by an amazing lineup of experts, designers and researchers exploring how connecting people and nature through design can transform our buildings and cities. This year’s conference is back — bigger and better than ever — at Westminster Central Hall in London on Sunday, 17th November. https://journalofbiophilicdesign.com/biophilic-design-conference Join us for a day of inspiring talks, interactive sessions, and meaningful connections with the people who are shaping the future of design for wellbeing, sustainability and climate resilience.This special edition of the Journal of Biophilic Design podcast is a podcast recorded by our friends at Workplace Geeks, Ian Ellison and Chris Moriarty. Host Ian Ellison sets out to explore a big question: Is biophilic design simply good design, or something we need to intentionally spotlight because of its unique importance to people, place and planet?In this deep dive, Ian speaks with a host of experts and thought leaders — including Dr Nigel Oseland, Dr Sally Augustin, Oliver Heath, Prof Harriet Shortt, Mark Catchlove, Dr Vanessa Champion, Matthew Burgess, Chloe Bullock, and Prof Geoff Proffitt — to unpack the science, theory, and lived experience behind biophilic design.You’ll hear:The psychological and evolutionary roots of our natural affinity for nature.Insights from the UK’s first Biophilic Design Conference and what made the Barbican such a fascinating venue.Real-world examples of biophilic design in action — from workplaces and clinics to urban spaces and beyond.Tune in to reflect, challenge assumptions, and join the ongoing conversation: is biophilic design just a feel-good concept, or is it the future of how we should be designing every environment?Book tickets to the 2nd Biophilic Design Conference - join us in PERSON and ONLINE https://journalofbiophilicdesign.com/biophilic-design-conferenceSession schedule : https://journalofbiophilicdesign.com/-2025-conference-sessionsConnect with the Workplace Geeks community:Share your thoughts using #WorkplaceGeeks or email hello@workplacegeeks.org.Follow @WorkplaceGeeks on LinkedIn and subscribe for more thought-provoking insights on workplace and design. To listen to the original visit https://www.buzzsprout.com/1933353/episodes/16903582-biophilic-design-buzzword-or-big-deal-a-workplace-geeks-investigationThey also have a listener survey live at the moment, with prizes, so do the survey too, that would be superb https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/WGls2025sv/Have you got a copy of the Journal? You can now subscribe as a member of the Journal of Biophilic Design or purchase a gorgeous coffee table reference copy or PDF download of the Journal journalofbiophilicdesign.comor Amazon and Kindle. Credits: with thanks to George Harvey Audio Production for the calming biophilic soundscape that backs all of our podcasts. Listen to our podcast on Audible, Amazon Music, Spotify, iTunes, YouTube and all the RSS feeds.https://www.facebook.com/journalofbiophilicdesign/https://twitter.com/JofBiophilicDsnhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/journalofbiophilicdesign/https://www.instagram.com/journalofbiophilicdesignIf you like this,please subscribe!
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