Growth is good when in accordance with nature’s own time-tested blueprint.

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By Nancy B. Solomon, AIA

While these intrepid designers are working to integrate architecture with natural systems, scientists are increasingly mounting evidence of the critical role nature has played in our evolutionary development and, if properly embraced, the potential nature offers for our future health and productivity. This area of study has come to be known as biophilia.

Edward O. Wilson, professor of comparative zoology at Harvard University, first used the term in 1984 to describe humans’ innate attraction to other forms of life. According to Wilson, our affinity for nature is intrinsically linked to our own human nature because—logically enough—our species developed over the course of hundreds of thousands of years within nature. “In short, the brain evolved in a biocentric world, not a machine-regulated world,” writes Wilson in The Biophilia Hypothesis (Island Press, 1993). From this premise, it follows that we humans may not be able to achieve our full potential—physically, intellectually, or spiritually—if we become too isolated from the natural world.

 

The New Watsu Center School and Residence Middletown, Calif. The world headquarters for the teaching and practice of Watsu, a therapeutic massage done in water, is located in an earthquake-prone area. Architect Eugene Tsui employed five geodesic domes (above) as the structural system. A series of parabolic arches angling in various directions (far right) creates a forestlike space for three outdoor showers. Photos © Eugene Tsui

Various research projects seem to support the biophilia premise. In one study by environmental psychologist Roger S. Ulrich, professor at Texas A&M University in College Station, patients recovering from surgery were assigned to rooms with windows overlooking either deciduous trees or brick walls. Those with the natural views recuperated more quickly while receiving less powerful painkillers. And, according to Seattle-based environmental psychologist Judith H. Heerwagen, productivity increased slightly when Herman Miller workers first moved into the McDonough-designed SQA building in Holland, Michigan, which boasts many green features. This is atypical, explains Heerwagen: Productivity typically decreases significantly during the first few months after a company relocates.

Stephen R. Kellert, professor at the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University, has explored the implications of biophilia on the built environment. In Reshaping the Built Environment (Island Press, 1999), Kellert spells out nine values of biophilia—defined briefly below—which he proposes as “broad design objectives” for future development:

• aesthetic (physical attraction and appeal of nature)
• dominionistic (mastery and control of nature)
• humanistic (emotional bonding with nature)
• naturalistic (exploration and discovery of nature)
• moralistic (moral and spiritual relation to nature)
• negativistic (fear of and aversion to nature)
• scientific (knowledge and understanding of nature)
• symbolic (nature as a source of language and imagination)
• utilitarian (nature as a source of material and physical reward).

Specific building elements that figure prominently in a discussion of biophilic architecture include organic forms; views to nature; indoor greenery; natural lighting, ventilation, and materials; and spatial and visual diversity.

According to Heerwagen, good examples of biophilia in the built environment are still few and far between. In fact, she believes modern zoo design takes these issues much more seriously than design for human habitation: “Zoo designers now consider the animals’ natural environments and what they need—physically, psychologically, and socially—to be healthy.” Long gone are the small, boxy cages of yesteryear; animals are allowed to roam more freely and, in some instances, even search for food. In contrast, how many Americans still work in sterile, windowless cubicles?

In an attempt to remedy our current human predicament, Rocky Mountain Institute is collaborating with Heerwagen and Kellert to develop a multiyear research program that would seek to determine the kinds of relationships that are truly needed between our built and natural environments.

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