Poorly conceived design divides us in urban areas from our wilds and has contributed to seeing nature as something isolated from us; this actually diminishes us. This post details how architecture and urban design can bring us back to nature, in schools, cities, workplaces and hospitals, with numerous benefits.
Architects and designers have control over our built environment; by changing the way we design cities and buildings to connect to rather than disconnect from nature, we can change our proximity to nature and shift our physical relationship to the environment.
The separation that we have crafted over the centuries through our isolating designs hasn’t come without costs. Obesity, ADHD, autism, a decline in creativity—these are all connected to a lack of environmental connection.
Unfortunately, this estrangement from nature has not only directly impacted our health, it has impacted our ability to respond to crucial modern challenges, such as climate change, because these dire environmental topics feel removed from us. A variety of excellent examples of urban-nature reconnects are offered from around the world.