Fall 2024: The Health Issue

Explore ways you may receive the most health and well-being benefits of your time in living architecture and natural green spaces, and learn about outstanding projects that can deliver these health benefits.

Explore how biophilic design reduces stress, improves recovery times, and enhances well-being. Studies reveal that exposure to real or simulated nature benefits patients, workers, and students by lowering blood pressure, heart rate, and enhancing cognitive function.

Toronto is leading the way in green infrastructure, integrating nature-based solutions into urban planning. From green roofs to the Green Streets Program, the city’s innovative policies enhance climate resilience and improve community well-being, setting a model for sustainable urban development.

The recent AIA resolution emphasizes integrating human health into architectural design, advocating for biophilic principles. This shift aims to enhance well-being and address global health challenges through nature-focused, human-centered environments.

Discover the healing power of living walls in healthcare. Learn how these green walls improve air quality, reduce stress, and enhance recovery times, creating sustainable and therapeutic environments for both patients and staff.

Doctors are increasingly prescribing time in nature as a natural remedy to improve mental and physical well-being, supported by evidence-based programs like PaRx. This preventative approach promotes accessible outdoor experiences for healthier lives.

Will's Garden at Carle Foundation Hospital is a therapeutic rooftop garden, offering a tranquil space for healing. Utilizing innovative lightweight growth media, it supports native plants, stormwater management, and provides year-round beauty for patients and staff.

Join Sustainable Futures as we speak with Gail Vittori, Co-Director of the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems, about sustainable healthcare, resilient building, and the transformative role of the natural world in enhancing our well-being.

Plants have long supported human health, with modern medicine using them in over half of pharmaceuticals. Recently, their biophilic benefits, like reducing stress and lowering blood pressure, have gained recognition in hospitals. This article explores a case study of an outdated medical center transformed with plants, including rooftop greenery, for therapeutic effects.

Providing estimates of the monetary benefits of improved health outcomes contributes to better decision making on resource allocation using multiple examples from Ontario municipalities.

This article explores the important role of sound in our evolution and how incorporating soundscaping into our designs can result in healthier, more productive building occupants, taking biophilic design to another level. 

Discover how green roofs and vegetable gardens on Denver and Boulder medical campuses enhance sustainability, improve patient recovery, boost staff well-being, and foster community engagement, driving a healthier and more sustainable future in healthcare.

Learn about the innovative Framework Plan to redevelop a 370 acre site, formerly an airport in the northwest corner of Toronto, with green infrastructure and public open space at its heart and healthy car free mobility and complete communities.

Join us at CitiesAlive 2024 in Toronto from November 6-9 for keynotes, masterclasses, and networking. Explore green roof and solar integration through new courses. Register early, and check upcoming symposiums and events for further professional development.

We analyzed landcover change in Porto, Portugal, using satellite imagery from 2017 and 2022. K-Nearest Neighbor classification revealed increases in impervious surfaces and decreases in vegetation, highlighting opportunities for green roof interventions and the importance of climate justice considerations.