Design guide summary: Creating Positive Spaces by Designing for Community

ABSTRACT

This article is a summary of ‘Creating Positive Spaces by Designing for Community’ in which we present research on the psychological benefits of a sense of community and how these benefits can be harnessed in workplace design (specifically within offices) to improve business outcomes. Here, we summarise this research and present our ‘seven Biophilic Features for Enhancing a Sense of Community’, which are informed by Biophilic Design theory. Developed as guidelines for architects and designers, they bring together what we suggest are the most important human-centred factors to consider when designing today’s workplaces to enhance community and connectivity.

KEYWORDS:

• Biophilia
• nature connection
• biophilic design
• human-centred design
• community
• workplace design
• interior design
• psychological wellbeing
• design guide

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was commissioned by Interface, Inc.

Notes on contributors

Oliver Heath

Oliver Heath is an Architectural and Interior Designer and a recognised global expert in Biophilic Design. His work is expressed in a number of mediums including design for the built environment, writing and the media; having worked for a number of television channels including BBC, ITV channel 4 and the National Geographic channel. He has acted as a spokesperson for the likes of the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the Energy Saving Trust (EST) and the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) and is currently a Biophilic Design Ambassador for Interface. His practice Oliver Heath Design are also the lead designers in the BRE’s Biophilic foundation space.

Victoria Jackson

Victoria Jackson is a Sustainable Design Consultant, Researcher and Educator. Her interest in improving well-being whilst creating more sustainable ways of living has led her to specialising in human-centred design. Victoria completed her MA in Sustainable Design under Jonathan Chapman’s supervision where her research was funded and published by DEFRA and the CIWM. An experienced lecturer, workshop facilitator and Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, Victoria has regularly taught at University for the Creative Arts (UCA) and the University of Brighton over the last decade. She also co-founded and project manages the Brighton Repair Café a voluntary organisation that encourages a shift towards the Circular Economy (CE).

Eden Goode

Eden Goode graduated university in 2016 with a BSC in Psychology, specialising in social behaviour, and has since joined the research team at Oliver Heath Design. Findings from her dissertation have been published in educational magazine ‘Psychological Review,’ and have been presented both at the University of Sussex and at the leading European conferences in social psychology, in Spain and Edinburgh. Her background, and interest in what makes us feel and act the ways we do, helps to inform her research into the psychological and physiological benefits of Biophilic Design, and subsequent writing around the subject. Eden has worked alongside Oliver, Victoria and Interface, Inc. to produce the ‘Creating Positive Spaces’ Design Guide series.

Learn more about Oliver Heath Design at www.oliverheath.com/. You can also follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, or for any enquiries, please email [email protected].

Interface Inc

Interface, Inc. is a global commercial flooring company specializing in carbon neutral carpet tile and resilient flooring, as well as cradle-to-gate carbon negative carpet tile. We help our customers create high performance interior spaces that support well-being, productivity, and creativity, as well as the sustainability of the planet. Our mission, Climate Take Back™, invites others to join us as we commit to running our business in a way that is restorative to the planet and creates a climate fit for life.

Learn more about Interface carpet tile and luxury vinyl tile (LVT) at http://www.interface.com/ and our nora® rubber flooring brand at http://www.nora.com. For more information about our carbon negative products, visit http://www.interface.com/carbonnegative.